### Author:  [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/1 "2012-06-05T19:16:46Z")
I know there are many bird lovers here, so here’s my question.
I have a bird feeder.
I LOVE it. I love it. For entertainment to dollars, so worth the birdseed. I want to find a good book for Texas birds that tend to go to birdfeeders. I recognize a male and female cardinal, a bluejay and maybe a female one (but is most likely subadult), and mourning doves \. But I want more tips.
Or a website.
I live on the northwest side of Houston
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### Author:  [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/2 "2012-06-05T19:20:11Z")
Did a bird fly off with you?
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### Author:  [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/3 "2012-06-05T19:23:14Z")
This is great thread!
I WONDER
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### Author:  [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/4 "2012-06-05T19:24:46Z")
Now I’m just being made fun of.
Grumpy face.
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### Author:  [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/5 "2012-06-05T19:26:35Z")
Once again, [whatbird.com](http://whatbird.com) comes through with a [Texas-specific list](http://www.whatbird.com/browse/objs/all/birds_na_147/38/location/886/texas) including photos, information, and the “Bird Expert” directed search feature to help you narrow down possible identifications based on some specific feature(s).
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### Author:  [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/6 "2012-06-05T19:37:24Z")
Ah. Much better. 🙂
I’m in DFW. Most of the birds I see aren’t really restricted to Texas, FWIW. When I get home from work I’ll try to remember to post back with the name of the excellent guidebook I have. In the meantime, I’ll leave this tip: **safflower seed**.
I switched to feeding 100% safflower seed and now am rarely bothered by invasive (a.k.a. undesirable) birds like grackles and sparrows. Native birds like it, non-natives don’t. Also, squirrels won’t touch it. But finches, cardinals, etc? Whoo! It’s like crack for them, or something.
Here’s what I see most frequently in our area:
- white-wing dove
- mourning dove (smaller and more pinkish than the white-wing, which is Eurasian)
- cardinal
- house finch
- bluejay
- sparrows, both European and native
- nuthatch
- tufted titmouse
- black-capped chickadee
- downy woodpecker
- red-bellied woodpecker
- wren, usually Carolina
- ruby-throated hummingbird
- mockingbird (of course!)
- brown-headed cowbird
- grackle
- European starling
- robin
If you can pick those out of a lineup, you’ll likely be able to ID most of the birds at your feeder.
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### Author:  [@Gukumatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gukumatz)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/7 "2012-06-05T22:51:33Z")
Paging Dr. **Colibri** , Dr. **Colibri** to the aviary, please.
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### Author:  [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)
#### Post date: [June 5, 2012, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/8 "2012-06-05T23:39:50Z")
Moved Cafe Society --\> IMHO.
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### Author:  [@KRC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KRC)
#### Post date: [June 6, 2012, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/9 "2012-06-06T06:14:36Z")
Purplehorshoe, White winged doves are native. Eurasian doves (I’ve been monitoring their populations for about 6 years in my neighborhood;) are from the Mideast and wound up in this country due to an aviary being destroyed in the Bahamas. If anyone lives in an area with both White Wings and Eurasian doves here are some pictures:
> **[White-winged Dove Identification, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-winged_Dove/id)**
>
> Originally a bird of desert thickets, the White-winged Dove has become a common sight in cities and towns across the southern U.S. When perched, this bird’s unspotted brown upperparts and neat white crescents along the wing distinguish it from the...
> **[Mourning Dove or Morning Dove? - Bird Profile Fact Sheet](https://www.thespruce.com/mourning-dove-profile-387260)**
>
> The mourning dove is common, but how much do you know about these birds and their not-just-morning mournful cries? This fact sheet may surprise you!
If you want to help the cause of science in your birdwatching, check in with these people:
> **[Browse](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/browse/topic/get-involved/?pid=1162)**
>
> Your online guide to birds and birdwatching
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### Author:  [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)
#### Post date: [June 6, 2012, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/10 "2012-06-06T07:16:46Z")
Thanks, **kimstu** I’ll check that website out. Thank you too, **purplehorseshoe** \
### Author:  [@ethelbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ethelbert)
#### Post date: [June 6, 2012, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/11 "2012-06-06T14:16:39Z")
You might want to get a finch feeder (with niger seed). I had never seen goldfinches in my area (northern NJ) until I put one out. Then there was a veritable cloud of them (very cool). The house and purple finches will feed at the regular feeder, but the goldfinches seem to like their own place.
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### Author:  [@AndyLee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndyLee)
#### Post date: [June 6, 2012, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/12 "2012-06-06T15:48:00Z")
Make sure you get a webcam, then you can stream your birds live on the Internet and make them famous.
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### Author:  [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)
#### Post date: [June 6, 2012, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/13 "2012-06-06T18:37:13Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#):
>
> I switched to feeding 100% safflower seed and now am rarely bothered by invasive (a.k.a. undesirable) birds like grackles and sparrows. Native birds like it, non-natives don’t. Also, squirrels won’t touch it. But finches, cardinals, etc? Whoo! It’s like crack for them, or something.
Perfect timing for this. I’m new to bird feeders. A pair of chickadees moved into a birdhouse in my yard. When I saw them flying back and forth, obviously feeding chicks I hung a [Clingers Only Bird Feeder](http://www.amazon.com/Clingers-Only-Bird-Feeder-Green/dp/B000BCHWHQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top) filled with black oil sunflower seeds in a lilac tree across the yard from their house. The chickadees found it in less than 10 minutes.
It took a couple of weeks for the squirrels to find the bird feeder. They emptied it out immediately. I bought a shepard hook pole for the feeder. The squirrels climbed the pole lickety split, sometimes three squirrels at a time dangling from the feeder. Put a cone shaped squirrel baffle on the pole which stopped them climbing.
Now the feeder is being swarmed by sparrows (HOSP). They not only keep the chickadees, gold finches and woodpeckers away, they empty the feeder, throwing the seed all over the ground, feeding it to the squirrels … and the damn squirrels keep digging little holes in the yard.
I’ll for sure give the safflower seeds a try but a quick search of the web seems to show widely varying results. Any further advice for dealing with a major sparrow invasion?
BTW, I did deal with a few sparrows several years ago when I had room for a purple martin house. I used the “with extreme prejudice” method at that time but the sheer numbers of the current situation make that approach even more unappealing than it was then.
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### Author:  [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)
#### Post date: [June 6, 2012, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/14 "2012-06-06T18:40:28Z")
> [@AndyLee](#):
>
> Make sure you get a webcam, then you can stream your birds live on the Internet and make them famous.
What a fowl suggestion.
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### Author:  [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)
#### Post date: [June 8, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/15 "2012-06-08T18:48:37Z")
Thanks and a tip of the hat to **purplehorseshoe**.
I switched to safflower seed and the sparrows don’t even land on the feeder pole anymore; it was instant. An occasional sparrow still uses the birdbath a few yards away (and I don’t begrudge them that), but the flock of aggressive, bickering sparrows that was spoiling the whole thing for me is nowhere to be seen.
So far regular visitors at the feeder are Carolina chickadees, tufted titmouse, white breasted nuthatches, goldfinches, and a downy woodpecker.
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### Author:  [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)
#### Post date: [June 8, 2012, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/birds-at-a-bird-feeder/624187/16 "2012-06-08T18:53:03Z")
> [@ethelbert](#):
>
> You might want to get a finch feeder (with niger seed). I had never seen goldfinches in my area (northern NJ) until I put one out. Then there was a veritable cloud of them (very cool). The house and purple finches will feed at the regular feeder, but the goldfinches seem to like their own place.
You know, I got one of those. I had the original kinda generic feeder first, but saw one of those finch feeders and added it—it got almost no hits. We ended up mixing what didn’t go after a couple of weeks in with the other seed in the other one.
☹