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Starlings Cannot Hang Upside Down!
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Mar 4, 2021 13:13:38   #
Shooter41 Loc: Wichita, KS
 
While setting up bird feeders in my backyard for the first time, one of the sales women that sells suet feeders on the internet, convinced me that I should buy suet feeders with their opening on the bottom. Her reasoning was smaller birds like woodpeckers can hang upside down to get at the beef suet, while larger birds like European Starlings are to heavy to hang upside down on the bottom of her type feeder. She said, "This type of feeder will keep the Starlings from gorging themselves and chasing away all of the smaller birds." I am sending an email to the saleslady and attaching a copy of the enclosed image of a European Starling. Now I realize that she was a good sales person who must have wanted too make a commission. Please let me know if any of the other photographers who have seen Starlings not only hanging upside down on the bottom of a feeder, but also jumping up and down from branches below the suet feeder to grab a beak full, only to come back time after time.


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Mar 4, 2021 15:47:56   #
DaveO Loc: Northeast CT
 
LOL, I see this fairly often as I observe birds 10 hours or so per week, but they don't usually hang for long!

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Mar 4, 2021 17:19:45   #
Bill_de Loc: US
 
Rotate the image one hundred and eighty degrees.

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Mar 4, 2021 17:38:41   #
DaveO Loc: Northeast CT
 
Bill_de wrote:
Rotate the image one hundred and eighty degrees.

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Depends on how you look at it!

Glass half empty or half full??

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Mar 5, 2021 06:03:55   #
buckbrush Loc: Texas then Southwest Oregon
 
Once you pop a couple of starlings with a pellet they stop coming around for quite a long time. Thats the only thing that will keep those trash birds from hogging feed from all the other birds!

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Mar 5, 2021 07:37:19   #
Graveman Loc: Indiana
 
We have one of our bird feeders near the window in the "office" at home. Starlings will hang upside down at the suet feeder but prefer the seeds. Most of the time if they are feeding on the ground they will mingle with the other birds. Seems that the other birds will leave when the blue jays stop in.

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Mar 5, 2021 08:40:29   #
theaverlo Loc: Iowa
 
Starlings that visit our yard battle each other to hang upside down at the suit feeder. Seems like it's a game for them.

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Mar 5, 2021 09:19:35   #
Shooter41 Loc: Wichita, KS
 
theaverlo wrote:
Starlings that visit our yard battle each other to hang upside down at the suit feeder. Seems like it's a game for them.


Dear theaverio...Same here. Two of them will stand on a limb looking up at the feeder. One of them will start feeding upside down for a while. Then the other one will attack and take over and feed for a while. Then at another feeder with no limb directly under to stand on, will start jumping up flapping his wings to take a beak-full and drop back down. He will repeat this over and over until he has had enough. The sales women either didn't know what she was talking about, OR just wanted to make a sale. Stay safe and thank you for commenting.

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Mar 5, 2021 09:21:18   #
sb Loc: Florida's East Coast
 
Maybe you made it too easy with that branch.... I had an upside-down suet feeder for a while, but the grackles ate more of the suet than the woodpeckers did. The woodpeckers preferred the feeder with the suet pellets.

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Mar 5, 2021 10:28:50   #
Mustanger Loc: Grants Pass, Oregon USA
 
Well I see them upside down & every position all the time! Want me to send you about 2 dozen? I'd sure love to! ☺ Here is my pic ic you don't mind....I will remove it if you do... A heavy crop...

Too many here in Southern Oregon.


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Mar 5, 2021 11:05:03   #
Mark Sturtevant Loc: Grand Blanc, MI
 
How do we know these pictures aren't upside down? 🧐

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Mar 5, 2021 11:20:47   #
jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ
 
Shooter41 wrote:
While setting up bird feeders in my backyard for the first time, one of the sales women that sells suet feeders on the internet, convinced me that I should buy suet feeders with their opening on the bottom. Her reasoning was smaller birds like woodpeckers can hang upside down to get at the beef suet, while larger birds like European Starlings are to heavy to hang upside down on the bottom of her type feeder. She said, "This type of feeder will keep the Starlings from gorging themselves and chasing away all of the smaller birds." I am sending an email to the saleslady and attaching a copy of the enclosed image of a European Starling. Now I realize that she was a good sales person who must have wanted too make a commission. Please let me know if any of the other photographers who have seen Starlings not only hanging upside down on the bottom of a feeder, but also jumping up and down from branches below the suet feeder to grab a beak full, only to come back time after time.
While setting up bird feeders in my backyard for t... (show quote)


Hahahahahahaha

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Mar 5, 2021 11:49:27   #
RoswellAlien
 
So do squirrels, if they’re not picking sunflower seeds out of the platform feeder. 🖖

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Mar 5, 2021 12:00:37   #
Shooter41 Loc: Wichita, KS
 
Mustanger wrote:
Well I see them upside down & every position all the time! Want me to send you about 2 dozen? I'd sure love to! ☺ Here is my pic ic you don't mind....I will remove it if you do... A heavy crop...

Too many here in Southern Oregon.


Dear Mustanger...I believe you! I've never seen birds more adaptable to any situation involving free food. They are beginning to become my favorite birds to photograph because of all of their antics. I appreciate your picture of one of those beauties hanging upside down. I have a couple hundred of them fighting over food that I can send you if you like. Here is one of my favorites.


(Download)

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Mar 5, 2021 20:32:11   #
Wyantry Loc: SW Colorado
 
buckbrush wrote:
Once you pop a couple of starlings with a pellet they stop coming around for quite a long time. Thats the only thing that will keep those trash birds from hogging feed from all the other birds!


And Starling breasts are nice dark-meat morsels!

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