Sally, the striped are usually considerable larger than the black seeds. That's okay for blue Jays, Blackbirds, Grackles and Grosbeaks.... however chickadees, nuthatches, goldfinches, all the smaller guys prefer the black ones. Black is the best all-around seed for finches, siskins, etc. Our big problem is ORIDA which has switched from corn oil to sunflower oil and purchase most of the crop, hence $35 a 50 lb !!!! This is a ridiculous price and means many feeders will be empty this winter. Should be an interesting Christmas Count this year. Tom Erdman -----Original Message----- From: wisbirdn-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:wisbirdn-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Peter Steele Sent: Monday, October 10, 2011 10:54 AM To: wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [wisb] Crawford Cty RFI birdseed I need help from all you experts - I buy black oil sunflower seeds - my latest purchase had seeds that looked just like striped sunflower seeds - the store says they are still black oil or comparable. Any advice. Thanks in advance. Sally Steele Prairie du Chien, WI #################### You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding Network (Wisbirdn). To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at: //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at: //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn #################### You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding Network (Wisbirdn). To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at: //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at: //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn