Squirrel/big bird-resistant feeder, ideas?

[root]

This isn't original - there do seem to be a few models out there, but they cost about £50 each. But has anyone tried to build their own?

The idea is to have 2 concentric tubes. The inner one is a standard birdseed holder, with an access hole for the _little_ burdies. The outer one is somehow spring loaded and has the perch attached to it. When a large bird lands on the perch its weight pulls the outer sleeve down to block the seed access hole. Same principle if a skwrrl tries climbing down the outer sleeve from above - they're too heavy and it closes.

If a small, light bird lands on the perch, it's not heavy enough to draw the outer sleeve down to cover the food hole, so it can chomp away.

The key seems to be the spring mechanism. Ideally, you'd want its sensitivity to be adjustable (or the oouter sleeve to have some adjustable weights attached). That way you can set the max. weight of bird that you want to allow to feed.

So, has anyone tried this? What obvious or non-obvious drawbacks are there? How will it hold up to weather (I can imaging the outer sleeve getting frozen "up" in frosty conditions). What's agood, reliable, long-lasting spring mechanism to withstand outdoor use?

[Gazz]

and decapitates it in the process :)

[root]

Hmmm, that sounds like the "de-luxe" version - the Gull-o-tine :)

[km]

I solved this by using a reasonably heavy duty mesh (plastic covering over metal) formed into a tube. This was then stood on its side so that it was placed end on over the bowl of seeds. The open end was covered with a small wicker basket - looks like a nest!

The bowl and covering are on top of a garden stool with twist wires used to fix it to the top of the stool. This is on the patio within our view - all the small birds can get through the mesh but larger birds can't access it because the loop of mesh is wide enough to prevent to cover the top of the stool and leave no outside platfrom for them. The only ones to have a go are pigeons who twist themselves into all sorts of positions to get at the seed. Occasionally a squirrel will have a go but as the position is near to our patio window they are reluctant to persist.

Hope this makes sense.

km

[km]

Have just taken a photo see here:

it gives you some ideas. More simple than your spring mechanism but it is effective.

km

[root]

Nice one. The Fort Know approach :) Thanks for the photo

Thre is a little more information. My mum has a few of the traditional tubular birdseed holders that hang off a bespoke garden ornament. What I'm hoping to do is add a modification to the existing glass/plastic feeders as she doesn't like the pigeons and squirrels taking the seed she puts out (personally my view that they gotta eat, too). There are cages available that operate on the same principle you're using. When I looked at them on Amazon and read the reviews, they seem to be rather disappointing in their abillity to deter the above "pests". Her squirrels do seem to be remarkably determined. [ As a side note, I'm not sure it's a good long term strategy for humanity to keep devising more ingenious traps/deterrents as it just adds an evolutionary pressure to select for intelligence. We don't need the competition :( when we're selectively breeding ourselves for resistance to crisps, lager and soap operas. But I digress ... ]

If I was going for a blue-sky solution something like what you suggest looks like a good idea. As it is, the need is to add something to the existing feeders - though I will have to modify them to attach the perches to the sliding tube rather than the seedholder body.

[rbel]

We had a problem with squirrels and magpies taking far more than their 'share' of the bird feed. Eventually we tried some Droll Yankee kit which seems to have solved the problem as far as the suspended tubular feeders are concerned. We fitted DY 'Rain guard' domes to the feeders above the feeding ports which have proved to be an effective deterrent.

If the feeders are pole mounted it is possible to fit an acrylic dome to the pole, lower than the base of the feeders, to prevent squirrels from gaining access from below. I think that ours is a Gardman product.

I don't know if DY still make it but they used to produce a 'flipper' seed feeder which recognised the weight of a squirrel and flipped it off.

rbel

[root]

Oh these squirrels have been watching Tarzan movies. They climb up a tree that's about 6 - 8 feet away and leap across, to the feeder or the chain that supports it. Maybe a guard above the feeder would help with that prblem. I like the flipper idea.

[SS]

I like it.

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