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Posted: 5/11/2023 9:06:14 AM EDT
[#1]
In that situation, I'd stop feed/water for a while and see if they move on. I don't know of anything else that you could do, that wouldn't also hurt native birds. I guess you could try a slingshot, if you can do it without hitting other birds, neighbors houses, etc.
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Posted: 5/11/2023 9:06:36 AM EDT
[#2]
Good luck.
They are smart and learn quick what a rifle is. Then they alert others when they see you with one. Ive thought of making an electrified feeder with a remote switch so you could zap unwanted pests. |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 9:15:33 AM EDT
[#3]
Quoted: What to do? We feed the birds and have a fountain. I can stop both. But the wanted sing birds use it too. The Starlings have a lot of young ones and they mob the fountain. The screeching is irritating. Can't stand them. Non native invasive pests. Open to ideas for limiting or eliminating them. Live in town so BB gun is against the city ordinances so it's got to be on the downlow. And there's a shit load of them. Glad I'm out in a really rural area now, outside of any towns, where pretty much anything goes... |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 9:28:11 AM EDT
[#4]
Going to have to remove the food and water
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Posted: 5/11/2023 9:33:28 AM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Good luck. They are smart and learn quick what a rifle is. Then they alert others when they see you with one. Ive thought of making an electrified feeder with a remote switch so you could zap unwanted pests. Oh...please do this and tell us how it works! I don't feed but still have plenty of starlings and sparrows. If I can selectively dispatch them at the feeder it sounds like a great way to control invasive species. |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 9:44:39 AM EDT
[#6]
PCP precharged pneumatic with a moderator or suppressor is what you need. Get one that is regulated so you can adjust the power down where it’s quiet yet still effective at the range you need.
This is a good place to start research for your rodent problem.https://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=6&f=54&t=541177&tl=Help-me-pick-a-new-PCP-with-details YouTube has some excellent videos on starling control. But I warn air guns are addictive. I would recommend .22 over .177 caliber. I would set my feeder up in a protected spot where people can’t see and build a backstop. Then I would condition the flying rodents to get used to it. I would also setup a hide with a good solid rest such as a tripod or Caldwell field pod and a chair. |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 10:10:28 AM EDT
[#7]
I feel your pain. The blue jay thugs showed up yesterday and are muscling every bird but the woodpeckers around.
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Posted: 5/11/2023 10:16:19 AM EDT
[#8]
There’s some good ideas here.
I can shoot a BB gun but I think the town is a bird sanctuary. I don’t consider starlings anything other than a pest. I’ve thought about setting up a net and attract them, trap and eliminate. But that’s just chipping at the iceberg. Stopping the feed and water might entice them to move on. Those little bastards are everywhere. A better BB gun or pellet rifle is definitely in order tho. I’ll look into those and start another addiction cycle! |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 10:53:09 AM EDT
[#9]
You could use an airsoft rifle, should be plenty to kill them.
For sparrows i fashioned up a feeder halo. It stopped then cold and i have been using them for almost a year. They still come around but only a handful. The other thing i did was setup a feeder with cracked corn away from the main feeders. You could also use a dome over the feeders instead of a halo. Good luck |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 10:53:28 AM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryQuoted: A better BB gun or pellet rifle is definitely in order tho. I'll look into those and start another addiction cycle! There's even a forum for it.  https://www.ar15.com/forums/armory/Airguns/54/ |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 12:29:08 PM EDT
[#11]
Starlings are hell on airplanes. I've removed nests and had the bastards build it back in 2 hours. The best way to get them out of hangars and aircraft is to block access to nesting cavities, but they still shit all over everything. BB guns work. Sticky traps work, but are indiscriminate. I've thrown the young ones out on the ramp and watch the crows take care of business.
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Posted: 5/11/2023 1:35:24 PM EDT
[#12]
Does "bird sanctuary" define all birds? If starlings are considered nuisance, this would be very satisfying.
 Shooting Starlings with a PCP - Airgun Pest Control ep. 3 - BHT |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 5:40:30 PM EDT
[#13]
One more vote for a pcp air rifle.
I have a few very nice and expensive spring air rifles that no longer get used. There really is no comparison between the two designs. A PCP can be held just like an actual firearm, holding position doesn't matter, while it is critical in a spring air gun. I also prefer the .22 caliber airguns. There is not as much difference in price between the caliber of pellets as there used to be. Be warned, I bought one, and by the end of the day had ordered several more for some of my boys. The airguns really are that amazing. |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 10:11:18 PM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Does "bird sanctuary" define all birds? If starlings are considered nuisance, this would be very satisfying.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0rvRo57wiMAlso agree on the PCP. They got the message here. They will avoid you after the first time or to. I ended up using the car with tinted windows as a blind shooting from the back right out the front left (20 yard shot to the feeder). Also the upside down suet feeders discourage them and are worth it although not near 100% effective. |
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Posted: 5/11/2023 10:55:25 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I feel your pain. The blue jay thugs showed up yesterday and are muscling every bird but the woodpeckers around. If you put out cat food or smaller size dog food on a separate feeder, the Blue Jays will go for that, as will crows and some other big birds. That will take pressure off the seed feeders for the songbirds. ETA: Jays are corvids, and can talk and actually have conversations (we know this now) so I have a soft spot for them. My mom used to kill them so I understand how aggressive they can be. Hurts my heart to see them killed but you have to do what you have to do. The cat food has helped us keep them to a separate feeder. |
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Posted: 5/13/2023 12:55:21 AM EDT
[#16]
Buddy almost lost a dump truck due to starlings . They built a nest on the motor and well the driver had to use a fire Extinguisher . Couple days later I just happened to notice a piece of weed hanging from the fender liner of my F350 ( only drivemit on the weekends becauseof a company truck) . Pulled both wheel liners and removed a huge nest from each one . 2 days later they had rebuilt, so I removed them again ( actually removed 7 nests from the fenders ) Following day I laid in my shop for 3 hours and 5 of them that landed under the truck . Didn't help removed another from on top of the battery . Now I have bird netting wrapped around my truck to keep them out until I can figure a way to go scorched earth on them . I've heard that dissolving salt in water , then mixing that in with bird seed , drying the seed and feeding them will dehydrate the birds and they die ? That would kill a few sparrows though if true
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Posted: 5/13/2023 7:16:17 AM EDT
[#17]
Quote HistoryQuoted: If you put out cat food or smaller size dog food on a separate feeder, the Blue Jays will go for that, as will crows and some other big birds. That will take pressure off the seed feeders for the songbirds. Thanks, assume you mean the dry stuff. Had no desire to shoot them. I get enough target practice with squirrels, particularly the evil red ones. |
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Posted: 5/13/2023 11:29:00 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted: That would kill a few sparrows though if true English Sparrows are also invasive and harmful to native birds. They are larger and stronger than many native songbirds and harrass them and "evict" them out of their nesting locations. |
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Posted: 5/14/2023 12:06:26 AM EDT
[#19]
Hire local 12 year old , buck a starling , plus bb’s. A daisy 760 with a 4x is great and easy.
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Posted: 5/15/2023 8:38:36 AM EDT
[#20]
I’ve got one of the CMP Daisy 853 air rifles that does the job on them. It’s nice and quiet at what - 550 fps? Like others have stated, they learn quick. I’ve had to resort to cracking a window screen open just enough to play Oswald from inside the house. Step outside with the rifle and they’re gone.
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Posted: 5/15/2023 8:48:50 AM EDT
[#21]
Follow Jones falconry on the gram and see what he does.
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Posted: 5/15/2023 9:02:58 AM EDT
[#22]
They tell us to turn off the outdoor lights so the birds can migrate without issue, and to not fill the bird feeders because of bear.
Birds don't need food in the spring around farms |
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Posted: 5/15/2023 12:09:21 PM EDT
[#23]
Thanks for the replies.
I did find out starlings are not protected. Nuisance birds. In addition to BB guns, I can use a trap for them and euthanize them as well. Removing the food before mid day and not putting out suet has helped some. Seems the lazy bastards are late feeders. It’s going to take a couple of steps but hopefully they’ll move on to other places. |
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Posted: 5/15/2023 12:23:50 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Thanks, assume you mean the dry stuff. Had no desire to shoot them. I get enough target practice with squirrels, particularly the evil red ones. Yes. In winter we feed all the flying pigs around us. The songbirds don't stand a chance at the feeders between the jays and the blackbirds (we don't mind the blue heads--but they don't come here in huge numbers like starlings) So we feed bird seed and suet at hanging feeders, and spread dry dog food on the picnic table. We put some right at the edges because the big woodpeckers like it too, and they perch on the edge of the table and get the kibble that's right along the edges. It lets the songbirds have the sunflower seeds and chicken scratch. (Doves like the scratch.) |
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Posted: 5/15/2023 12:25:20 PM EDT
[#25]
Quote HistoryQuoted: English Sparrows are also invasive and harmful to native birds. They are larger and stronger than many native songbirds and harrass them and "evict" them out of their nesting locations. We have native house sparrows too, though. Hate to kill them. Come to think of it, I don't think I saw an English Sparrow all winter. Might have just missed them though. Our sparrows and house finches have taken a beating from that disease that has been going through this area. 
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Posted: 5/15/2023 12:36:10 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I've living in town all my life, up untill 5 or 6 years ago. I never heard of not being able to shoot BB or pellet guns. We had all kinds of BB gun fun. One time a neighbor called the cops on us and said we were shooting real guns. Cops came, I showed him several BB guns and he went on his way... Glad I'm out in a really rural area now, outside of any towns, where pretty much anything goes... City I just moved out of had an ordinance about shooting any type of gun, including bb, pellet and airsoft. OP, I'd look at the higher powered airguns w/ a suppressor. Also, take a look at EDgun Leshiy's youtube channel, the guy lives in a neighborhood and shoots squirrels in his backyard. |
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Posted: 5/16/2023 11:16:16 PM EDT
[#27]
 Starling Cleaning Cooking and Eating Apparently you can eat them. Breast them out just like you would a dove. |
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