oriole feeder

[jonny_redhorse]

well...since I have a pending problem on feeding the birds up here in Hibbing (pigeon thing)....I figured I could narrow the feeding down and get more "bird species specific" and maybe attract a non seed eating bird...the oriole...I did here one yesterday chirpin away but never did actually see it...anyway....I went to "Wally-world" and came up with this idea of using a bird water system and converted it to a grape jelly(wal-mart cheap stuff cut with water) and orange half feeder........maybe even add a couple chunks of suet to one of the trays.......no doubt squirrels will chew the heck out of this set-up but at least the pigeons won't ....here's a pic of it....Any comments sure would be appreciated....jonny

[ddsbyday]

It looks like you have the Hilton of feeders. I am no expert but we just use 1/2 an orange nailed to several trees. We shoot red squirrels on site and are now starting to see a few grey and one black squirrel move in. The reds and greys don't share habitat well but after a few years of this system we still have a couple of reds that are pretty much nocturnal now but the balance is close. The feeders still get hit but the variety of species is widening. The orioles really love the oranges. I don,t recall having more than 1 pair during the summer and again I am no expert but I am assuming they are very territorial.

[esox]

Nice set up, we've been using an orange slice and grape jelly up close to the house and nectar out on the trellis. We've had an oriole come and go for about a week now. We’ve heard the tanager but haven’t seen him yet. I had to move one of the feeding stations off of the deck, darn cat, was getting to close to the cardinals.

"The reds and greys don't share habitat well "

They do around here!!! It's like non stop action with reds, greys, and blacks and now the chipmunks have moved back too. One of my neighbors doesn't have to even pick up the ones he shoots, the eagles come in and grab them for him.

[jonny_redhorse]

one day after putting this feeder out......nothing ........ ........we'll see how long it's gonna take ..maybe there's 2 or 3 orioles in Hibbing....... jonny(my camera's ready)

[ironman]

I bet the hornets are really gonna love that. You ought to take that idea and run with it, maybe you could make enough to absorb seed costs.

[jonny_redhorse]

Well..5 days has gone by!....no orioles!...hmmmmm ...I think this has turned into more of a "shrine" then a bird feeder for orioles! ....well.I guess I could get some nice macro shots of hornets .jonny

[buzzsaw]

Johnny, even though you haven't seen any Orioles as of yet, doesn't mean that wasn't a good idea! I have alot of Orioles and am thinking of trying "The Johnny setup" to see what they think.

Oh, and they could still show up.

[fishinphilth]

I have a hummingbird feeder that I get 2 Orioles back to every year. 4 cups of sugar to 1 gallon of water. I get a lot of hummingbirds too.

[jonny_redhorse]

Well.......so much for feedin orioles....it's been 10 days....I'd say that it's been a good indicator if any orioles were going to come to my feeder.......it's just not going to happen apparently ......my feeders comin down....personally...i don't think theres a half dozen orioles in within 20 miles of here ...I haven't heard one chirpin for a good 2 weeks .....jonny

[Dotch]

Bummer jonny. Sure can't say you didn't try. If it's any consolation, the plethora of orioles we had have become silent. The amount of nectar removed from the feeder has slowed to the point where I'm not sure if it's orioles or evaporation. On a brighter note, the bluebirds are building a nest in the same house they used last year after I spent most of the spring kicking sparrows and wrens out of it.

[MOBY RICHARD*]

Good day Folks! I also found the Orioles and others like humminbird nectar They may use a HB feeder if it has a perch and the openings are large enough I had a little Hairy Woodpecker That took over my feeder It would sit on the perch and peck out the little yellow plastic flower constrictors and then proceed to imbibe freely The tiny hummers could not make it flinch not matter how close or how much they dive bombed It was a real feeder hog When I taped over some of the holes and glued the rest it would perch and sit there and beg by bobbing as if to trying to tell me it was thirsty and convince me to open them up again I bought a new feeder with retractable perches and so far it is working I have not seen "Woody" for a while Hope I lost em I will try put the purches back out from time to time so I can get a better look at the Buzzys but I also noticed some of them spending way too much time at the bar and I was afraid they were filling up too much and migh not be able to fly One was really getting a big tummy! Anyway they do sell oriole feeders with the larger openings and orange flavored nectar/sugarwater

[Steve Foss]

Hey Richard:

Welcome to FM. Good to have you here. I laughed out loud at your woodpecker tale. Pretty cool. I've been a birder for over 30 years and have never heard of a woodpecker doing that, so it just goes to show you you never know what could happen with birds.

[MOBY RICHARD*]

Sorry everyone I have to amend my woodpecker tale It was a Downy Woodpecker not a Hairy Thats why it was a smaller one

I hope it did not get the plastic flower stuck on its nose It took the other ones away I know not where so I could not reinstall them but no trouble at the new feeder yet and the Hummers are mighty happy to have it back to themselves

[MOBY RICHARD*]

Thanks Steve Glad you enjoyed it Theres a lot of funny business going on around here I have not seen this before either and after the Downy finished drinking the Goldfinches started to use it as well I was waiting to see if a Bald Eagle would be next

[mcary]

My wife's grandmother had a hummingbird feeder that opened to a tray at the bottom rather than to the small plastic flowers making it easy access for all bird species. She had a sapsucker that used to visit it regularly and used to sit beside it and cry if it was empty. Any chance your Downy was actually a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker?

[MOBY RICHARD*]

I dont think so as I looked it up to be sure it was the Downy rather than the Hairy But then I misstated the first time I will triple check and let you know if it was