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Author Topic: Weird Finch  (Read 5665 times)

Offline Lesli

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Weird Finch
« on: April 30, 2005, 09:03:20 am »
OK, it's not strictly a country topic, but I am out in the country.

For the last three days, there's a big fat finch who perches on a kitchen window frame and pecks at the glass. At first, I thought he was "fighting" his reflection, but he's doing it at all hours, even when there's no sun to speak of to cause a reflection.

What's up with this guy?
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Lesli

Offline Horns Pure Honey

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Weird Finch
« Reply #1 on: April 30, 2005, 08:17:58 pm »
Board? lol, or he is trying to find out how many pecks it takes to P of lesli, bye :D
Ryan Horn

Offline Lesli

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Weird Finch
« Reply #2 on: April 30, 2005, 08:54:23 pm »
:D Oh, it doesn't make me angry. Just curious. It's also great entertainment for the cats.
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Lesli

Offline Horns Pure Honey

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Weird Finch
« Reply #3 on: May 01, 2005, 12:00:11 am »
Lol, I bet the cats do like to watch that. bye :D
Ryan Horn

Offline Beth Kirkley

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Weird Finch
« Reply #4 on: May 01, 2005, 08:10:37 am »
That is odd. hmmm

Only thing I can think of hand is that there might be bugs (?) around the window ..... ants or (hopefully not) termites. And that the finch is trying to catch them.

??
Strange, but sounds amusing. Speaking of watching birds at a window, I saw something someone made once that helped a person watch birds close at hand. It was a window insert, that had a shelf to place bird food, and it was made with tinted plexiglass. So YOU could see the birds right at your window, but they couldn't see you and get scared. It was cool.

Beth

Offline Lesli

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Weird Finch
« Reply #5 on: May 01, 2005, 08:40:02 am »
Nah, no bugs, it's the window he's pecking at. Doing it right now. My only worry is if the poor guy flies into it and kills himself. Strange little bird!
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Lesli

Offline Beth Kirkley

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Weird Finch
« Reply #6 on: May 01, 2005, 09:09:22 am »
Hey Lesli-
Decided to do a search for ya on the net, and this is the basic same answer I found everywhere. Well...... accept for the freaky sites that say it's an omen meaning "someone is going to die". LOL I wouldn't listen to that though - that site had some strange people on it. But here's what I found:

Quote
What to do if you are having trouble with a bird such as a robin or a cardinal flying and pecking at your window.

A bird, perhaps a cardinal or a robin, is insistently pecking and flying at one of your windows, starting early in the morning and perhaps continuing intermittently throughout the day. Does this sound familiar? Although this behavior seems odd, it's a very common complaint, especially in the springtime. Don't worry -- the bird is not trying to get into your house nor has it gone entirely crazy.

Male cardinals and robins are most known for this behavior, although females and other species also do it. The bird is seeing its own reflection in the window, and interpreting it as an interloper or competitor in its territory. In springtime, when birds are establishing territories in preparation for nesting and breeding, they have little tolerance for rival birds in the vicinity. They will diligently peck and fly at the "rival" bird they see in the window, in a futile attempt to drive it off. The bird will return again and again, only to find the intruder still there!

The problematic reflection is on the outside surface of the window, so changes made inside the house will be useless. The only way to dissuade the bird is to dull, break up or eliminate the reflection on the exterior surface of the window. Spray the window with glass-wax (fake snow), tape up newspaper, cardboard or similar material over the window, put up screening, or drape half-inch-mesh garden netting in front of the window. Leave the material up for at least two or three weeks. Remember to put the material on the outside of the window.

After a few weeks, the bird should get out of the habit of finding a "rival" at that location. The sooner you eliminate the reflection, the easier it will be to break the habit. If you've noticed the bird using a favorite perch or two while watching the window, try removing those perches, or blocking access to them temporarily. If you have a large house with many wide expanses of plate glass, you are may have a correspondingly large problem - especially if the bird has already developed the habit of going from window to window, finding its reflection at each one. But usually, the bird will have a "favorite" window; try your countermeasures there first.

The bird does not usually injure itself seriously, but may expend a large amount of energy defending against nonexistent intruders. Fortunately, the behavior is usually short-lived, and disappears when the bird begins nesting and caring for young. However, a few stubborn birds persist throughout the spring and summer; it seems to be an individual aberration. You may go years without a problem before a bird suddenly starts acting "bird-brained." It may stop as suddenly as it began.


I know you said you don't think it sees a reflection because there's no sun on the window, but they did say these birds do it all day. Starting from early morning, just as your little finch is doing.

Beth

Offline Lesli

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Weird Finch
« Reply #7 on: May 07, 2005, 09:03:11 pm »
Thanks! Yeah, I figured he was defending his territory. I don't think he's done it today, so maybe the season is over for him. :)
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Lesli

 

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