GTA
General Discussion To Gateway To Airguns => Hunting Gate => : Mryan21 March 02, 2010, 01:43:33 AM
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:0 . They land in the trees, but refuse to land on the biat. They landed last week once, and now they just hang out in the trees. They are very spooky. I don't understand why they won't land like before. i'm hidden, they just want nothing to do with it. Any of yous guys ever have this problem? Any tips would be appreciated. Maybe its time for a suet cage. I noticed they land more when there are other more favorable species feeding off the bait.
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12 gauge, 3" magnums, number 9 shot :D
I think you are right about the suet cage. I know that the only time I've seen them in my yard is when they are after the suet cage. I had to use a plastic tie to keep them and the squirrels from getting it open.
I've never went the way of making my own. I can get it at Wallyworld right now for .88 per suet cake.
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Suet cages would help... so would a couple of starling decoys :)
Starlings are very cagey,,, I've seen them refuse to land before and it's very frustrating to say the least. Sometimes putting out a new, different kind of bait can get them to come in. One of the things I put out that they almost always come right in to is old crackers, broken up fortune cookies and of course popcorn. Try a different bait that they can see very easily from the air,,, I think it might help.
Jeff
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I'll give another bait a try. the last two mornings all that would land were blue jays. As much as i dislike them, i can't shoot them. I know the starling action will get better when the ground starts to thaw. I did just miss a monster of a crow at fifty yards because i forgot to check how much air i had left in the disco. Oh well. The starlings here are smarter than the crows, it amazes me. I saw four squirrels in the yard this morning, cuz today the season is closed. I think they were laughing at me. Maybe another brand of catfood would help. what kinds of dry cat food are you guys using? Oh, one more question. Does the bait have to be dry for it to work? I leave the food out all night, and it's soggy in the morning. I always sprinkle some fresh food on top. Do i need to do this, or will the soggy stuff work?
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sorry im no help, but i too am having that same problem lol. im looking forward to reading what people have to say about this
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"......12 gauge, 3" magnums, number 9 shot :D ....."
If they're in the tree tops, better make it 8's, or 7-1/2's :D
Matt,
I've seen the weather be a factor also. If it's windy they don't come in, or only a few will come, but fly off after just a few seconds. They also stay close as a flock in the tops of one or two trees that are near each other.
If there are storms coming the next day they will come in and feed. They must know there's bad weather on the way and want to stock up.
Today, the Sun is out, hardly any wind, and it's warming up. The flock has broken up into many smaller groups in tree tops in all directions.
Sometimes I see them flying in from the farm fields west of town later on in the morning and they don't come down to the feeder until late afternoon. My guess is they've had "breakfast" out in the farm fields where manure has been spread. The few I've brought in to look at entry/exit wounds all smelled of manure so I know they've been feeding there like the turkeys, and large flocks of Crows we see out on freshly spread manure.
If your Starlings may have already eaten somewhere else ????
Paul.
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I've been slaying them when I bait properly. That's 4-8 every time and occasionally a big day of 9 or even 10.
Here's what I do. I'm shooting from inside down into a privacy fenced garden. It is perhaps 75' x 27'. I have two thistle socks, always filled, nearer to the house. Thus, I have lots of finches all the time, all day, unless there's a cat there or I'm too close. I've also got doves and juncos and song sparrows under the thistle socks. Then, further out, toward the last 10-15 feet of garden, I have my sunflower seed feeder. This has all the usual suspects on it and under it. It is always filled. I also have a suet cage hanging next to it. Then, I get down to brass tacks.
Just 10-15' to the east and slightly closer to the house I have my starling bait area. It's a dispersed area, maybe 10-12' oblong. When I bait, I use suet and bread and/or cat food right on the ground (I've not had to use much catfood), and any greasy or fatty left overs, like Steak bones and fat, or lamb shoulder if and as available (only during winter,thank you).
I think that the key to getting more birds in is that I broadcast some small piles of sunflower seeds in the area.. The starlings aren't interested of course. The Doves and cardinals are. So, the starlings see all these other excited birds eating food right next to their suet and bread. Furthermore, after I kill a starling, the other birds don't budge, they keep eating away...again, right in their food. And the starlings seem to freak out if they are watching the feed from the trees and a flock of doves comes in on it. Their greed instinct kicks in and they fly to the bait.
Essentially, I'm using live, non-starlings as decoys/shills for the starlings, in addition to providing lots of fat and bread spread out on the ground. I usually only collect birds a couple times a day, but they still come in (sometimes more nervously).
Hope that helps.
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Thanks for the tips mebits. I'm going to try and draw other birds in, maybe the starlings will follow.
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Truth is starlings are smart and fast stop waiting . This is the best tip you will get its up to you to apply the paticiants ONLY SHOOT SOLOS because at least one other is watching . When you shoot in front of a crowd they see death just like food . Remove all dead vermin instantly and food is food soggy or fresh starlings aren't picky remember this birds see you like the predator saw arnold in the movie.we glow easy to see in the window cover up sunday i shot 6 haven't seen one since hahahahhahahaha they know my truck when i'am knot around food dissappers , also leave a whole loaf of italian bread so they cant take it in your shooting zone they will know its there and dive bomb it all the time spike it down even moldy works . good luck, chris
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It's like when a guy has several attractive women around him, other women are interested, wondering what he's got going on. ;)
That's why when I was much younger, I'd take my much more attractive younger sister with me. Sometimes they'd wait until the next time they saw me there, but there were always one or more interested ones when I brought Sis along.
;)
Is that a bad analogy?
M
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Thanks for all the tips guys. I'm gonna give it a shot this morning with some new techniques. First one that lands in the tree is getting whacked....