"Nuisance Birds"

One of the most common questions I receive from people who are not avid birders like me, is how to deal with so called "nuisance birds" at feeders. My first response is always the same. "Why do you consider the bird undesirable?" The answers are mixed but mostly refer to the fact that they scare away the "pretty birds", or that they eat too much seed, or that they are too noisy and come in large numbers. So, I thought I would talk about some of these birds that are referred to as a nuisance by bird feeding enthusiasts.

Probably the most common bird that people wish to discourage from their feeders is the European Starling. Even as much as I love birds, I always have ambivalent feelings regarding this species. These birds are everywhere in the USA and are truly a global bird, found in New Zealand, Australia and South Africa as well as Europe. Rumor has it that 100 of these birds were released in Central Park in 1890 and that the population in North America is now 150-200 million birds. These birds are considered to be a nuisance because they are flocking birds and they roost in great numbers in trees and man made structures resulting in noisy chattering and high volumes of waste concentration. In Indianapolis last year, the city council approved a plan of killing several European Starlings as they were wintering over at a local power plant and were creating perceived unsafe conditions for workers and residents. In fact, several cities are taking similar measures. And there are some web sites with instructions on how to kill them.

Any time a suet feeder is hung around here, you can count on Starlings to invade it. They love suet! So, are these birds absolutely of no value? Depends on who you ask. The evidence suggests that they do provide an agricultural benefit by consuming crop damaging insects. However, they also are aggressive competitors for nesting sites with other birds. Their abundance and existence are the fault of man interfering with their lives and now they are paying for it.