# Seems like Women do this and I don't get it **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 19, 2013, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709 "2013-05-19T00:40:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/21 "2013-05-19T04:56:08Z")
[I’ve been enjoying the apex predators, personally.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=690879) (Just crossed paths with another one just a couple days ago.) I enjoy falconry too, and would be interested in trying it out, but living in a city it’s hard (and expensive!) to get a license. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/22 "2013-05-19T07:29:08Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > I’d prefer not to feed birds (due to the associated rodent population, not the birds themselves), but my husband insists that he’s keeping starvation at bay with his feeders. Actually, the feral cats that live in our shed _do_ eat pretty well at the feeders. > > I had some surgery a while back, so maybe it’s my lack of ovaries that makes me not care about feeding birds. Excellent username for this thread. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![artemis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@artemis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/artemis)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/23 "2013-05-19T16:52:15Z")
I enjoy feeding the birds - ALL the birds. I figure if a hawk or falcon plucks a songbird off a feeder, that’s sad but it’s just nature in action. Everything dies, and wild animals’ deaths aren’t usually pretty. And really, the songbirds at the feeder are facing no higher risk than they’d be facing at any other concentrated natural food source (like a bush full of berries). You bet the local predators learn where the songbirds habitually feed and hang out there! A lot of people are rather far removed from nature and are easily shocked by natural processes. I figure it’s more of an urban-vs-rural thing than a male-vs-female thing. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/24 "2013-05-19T17:16:05Z")
I’m a woman and I’ve always had bird feeders out. I also think it’s fantastic when a hawk is able to catch a bird at the feeder. I do feel bad for the sparrow but there are hundreds of sparrows at the feeders and only one or two hawks. It’s hard work for a hawk to get some food so I’m always happy when I see one have a successful hunt. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/25 "2013-05-19T17:21:41Z")
I don’t have a bird feeder, but I know a number of people who do, and none have ever mentioned seeing a hawk swoop down to chop on a little birdie who was at the feeder. I assume this is because either such a thing is so rare they’ve never seen it happen, or because they consider it neither surprising nor upsetting enough to be worth mentioning. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/26 "2013-05-19T17:33:43Z")
We’ve had multiple bird feeders for years without ever having any birds picked off by a raptor. I don’t think it’s a given that it’ll happen, so I’m not surprised that people who do react with dismay. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/27 "2013-05-19T17:43:44Z")
My dad’s had multiple bird feeders in his yard for most of my life. Never had predator birds hanging around. I’ve hung up 2 feeders near my house (I’m a woman) and had no expectations of the little birds getting picked off, as it’s my experience with bird feeders that this is not an issue. Not sure how being a silly ol’ girl plays into it. In my lifetime experience with bird feeders, placed by a man, predator birds are not a problem. Oh also I get hawks hanging out on the back of my fence all the time (not near the house or the feeder). They never come up to the feeders that I have seen. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/28 "2013-05-19T18:02:44Z")
Female, lots of bird feeders. Have occasionally had a prey-bird staking them out, I find it fascinating. I’ve not actually seen a bird taken from the feeder, but I know when there’s a hawk around from the way the little birds act. Doesn’t bother me one bit, hawks have to eat too. ---
**Author:** ![stoplight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@stoplight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stoplight)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/29 "2013-05-19T18:27:38Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > My dad’s had multiple bird feeders in his yard for most of my life. Never had predator birds hanging around. > > I’ve hung up 2 feeders near my house (I’m a woman) and had no expectations of the little birds getting picked off, as it’s my experience with bird feeders that this is not an issue. > > Not sure how being a silly ol’ girl plays into it. In my lifetime experience with bird feeders, placed by a man, predator birds are not a problem. > > Oh also I get hawks hanging out on the back of my fence all the time (not near the house or the feeder). They never come up to the feeders that I have seen. Much more interested in the reaction. All the gals were horrified, the one gal hanging the bird feeder at the time was sick to her stomach, while the husbands just figured it as a natural state of affairs and one said if you do not like the killing then don’t put out the feeders. ---
**Author:** ![miss\_elizabeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@miss\_elizabeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miss_elizabeth)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/30 "2013-05-19T18:29:29Z")
I’m a woman, but I only feed squirrels. The only people I know with bird feeders are men. I’ve never known anyone to be upset when a hawk or something comes (not that it happens often) but I do think it’s cruel to feed the birds if you have cats that get out and can hunt them, because housecats aren’t indigenous species here, and the birds aren’t evolved to escape them. Plus I just think it’s an asshole move. This thread is weird. ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/31 "2013-05-19T18:57:54Z")
> [@stoplight](#): > > Much more interested in the reaction. All the gals were horrified, the one gal hanging the bird feeder at the time was sick to her stomach, while the husbands just figured it as a natural state of affairs and one said if you do not like the killing then don’t put out the feeders. Given the response in this thread, I suspect it had more to do with the individuals involved than anything that could be extrapolated along gender lines. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/32 "2013-05-19T19:01:35Z")
My deck is in the treetops, giving me ample opportunity to watch the birds and squirrels. I don’t feed them (and I am a woman), but have a couple of neighbors that do. I’ve watched red tails swoop down for a meal on occasion and it’s fascinating. Not pretty, but fascinating. Like **artemis** mentioned, rural vs. urban or suburban likely makes more of a difference. **Stoplight** , do you live in the city, suburbs or out in the country? ---
**Author:** ![Troppus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a587f6/32.png) [@Troppus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troppus)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/33 "2013-05-19T19:11:43Z")
Red-tailed hawks prefer squirrels and snakes, they are pretty big an not as adept at tearing in lightning fast and stealthy like Cooper’s and Sharp-shinned. Casual bird feeders won’t notice the flurry of activity and community squawking that occurs when a raptor has been spotted, and the bird-eating raptors grab and go quickly. They don’t stick around to dine or gloat because the remaining birds will go on the attack. I usually spot them by the dark shadow then the explosion of feathers, or when the feeder suddenly clears followed by a chorus of alarm calls. Doves, plump and slow to take off are frequent victims, as are starlings, grackles and similar birds which gather in large, noisy groups more preoccupied with gossip than keeping a wary eye on the sky. ---
**Author:** ![stoplight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@stoplight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stoplight)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/34 "2013-05-19T19:26:01Z")
> [@missred](#): > > My deck is in the treetops, giving me ample opportunity to watch the birds and squirrels. I don’t feed them (and I am a woman), but have a couple of neighbors that do. I’ve watched red tails swoop down for a meal on occasion and it’s fascinating. Not pretty, but fascinating. > > Like **artemis** mentioned, rural vs. urban or suburban likely makes more of a difference. **Stoplight** , do you live in the city, suburbs or out in the country? suburbs ---
**Author:** ![gracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@gracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gracer)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/35 "2013-05-19T19:27:13Z")
Me iz a stoopid wimmins, i haz a burd feeder. Yup, you got me. My gender means that I am retarded and those raging hormones in crazy wimmins mean they will all cry when they see pretty birdies being eaten. That only makes sense, everyone knows hormones work that way. Duh. ---
**Author:** ![Skypist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skypist/32/169_2.png) [@Skypist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skypist)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/36 "2013-05-19T19:31:24Z")
That happened to me once (hawk swooped down and grabbed a smaller bird right in front of my window) and I was kind of startled by it, primarily because it didn’t occur to me that a hawk would be hunting in a pretty big human-populated neighborhood right in town instead of out in the country somewhere. I didn’t cry, I was just sort of like wow. I’ve always lived in towns and have always either fed birds myself (female) or lived with someone else who fed birds (my mom) and have never seen this happen before or since that one time. ---
**Author:** ![stoplight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@stoplight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stoplight)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/37 "2013-05-19T19:34:00Z")
> [@gracer](#): > > Me iz a stoopid wimmins, i haz a burd feeder. > > Yup, you got me. My gender means that I am retarded and those raging hormones in crazy wimmins mean they will all cry when they see pretty birdies being eaten. That only makes sense, everyone knows hormones work that way. Duh. ahh..that’s funny…thanks for sharing!! ---
**Author:** ![Enkel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/38 "2013-05-19T19:53:55Z")
> [@stoplight](#): > > My wife and her friend are two of the many woman I know that have, with all good intent, colluded in the deaths of several birds, including but not limited to Dove, Quail, Finch, Sparrow and whatever species I missed. > > Both of them have put out bird feeders. After a short while word gets out and the feeders are crowded with birds. Couple weeks back 10 couples gathered for a bbq. My wife’s friend goes on about how a Red Tail hawk swooped out of the sky and tore into a Dove. All the women gasped in horror while simultaneously all the guys laughed. > Got me thinking, not one guy I know has put out a bird feeder but many women have and then complain when the apex predator shows up. What gives gals? is it not how the world works or are you expecting something different to happen? My sister loves all the pretty little birdies and puts out a feeder, points to it and proudly describes all the many types of birds. Then she comes to my house, sees that I have a bird feeder (out in the open field) and says “Wow, I bet you get a lot of really nice birds here!” To which I reply, “Yup, I have at least three nice sized hawks so far.” Sister is ‘horrified’ that I set up a hawk browsing station 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/39 "2013-05-19T21:22:25Z")
> [@gracer](#): > > Me iz a stoopid wimmins, i haz a burd feeder. > > Yup, you got me. My gender means that I am retarded and those raging hormones in crazy wimmins mean they will all cry when they see pretty birdies being eaten. That only makes sense, everyone knows hormones work that way. Duh. Don’t feel bad according to majority of commercials all men are still idiots. I’d have a bird feeder if I needed one, but I don’t. I live right next to a forest that borders a river. The sound in the morning is awesome. We have falcons and hawks, they’ve been known to snatch cats and small dogs around here. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2013, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709/40 "2013-05-19T21:45:52Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > Now it’s a hawk feeder. Circle of life. Hakuna matata bitches! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seems-like-women-do-this-and-i-dont-get-it/658709.md?page=3)