will this keep the blue jays out? I want a feeder that will keep them away as they are bullies and keep the little birds from being able to use it
1127992
No it is large enough for red wing black birds as well as Blue Jays to make a landing plus they do make it swing back and forth.
1127993
We found the large birds come and make the feeder swing causing the seed to empty quickly, like in a day. There is however another one that we purchased but instead of the tray it has 4 feeding ports. It works great.
1127994
Yes, because they are too heavy. Also keeps squirrels out. However, if you have bears make sure the feeder is very high up. We have lost two feeders to bears. Now it is on a pulley and we have it very high.
1314203
I purchased the hawk to keep birds out of our garden. It worked well.I am hoping over the winter that it will keep the crows/birds off of our winter pool cover.
1253784
I don't have a squirrel problem so I am not sure. However, I placed this outside to keep the bird poop off my kids swing set... for the first week they stayed away.... then they just perched right next to it on the pole. After a week they knew it wasn't a threat.
1111328
I think some birds cannot sit and reach into the small seed-holding squares,very few birds use ours. However, rain gets in and concretes the seed, has to be dug out. Does keep out squirrels though!
904460
Depends on the weight. The perch has 3 spring loaded settings which adjust the weight at which the perch tips down. Large birds like blue jays still have trouble since the distance from the perch to the seed openings is small. The springs could probably be shortened which would decrease the tipping weight. Like I said this unit is ineffective for squirrels as the hang on one side and reach around to the other.
1735644
I have a round feeder which is a cage that encloses a feeder that is also in a wire enclosure. This lets the small birds get into the cage to eat seed, but keeps the squirrels and large birds out. I believe it is also a perky pet feeder. I also have feeders that look just like the one pictured but they close up the feeding holes when a squirrel gets on them because of the weight of the squirrel and these work very well. Good luck!
1612663
Regrets, but I haven't owned it during a Winter. I have other feeders but unfortunately don't know of any that can feed cardinals but not jays/grackles. In fact I sometimes get a flock of crows which chase everything else away except maybe the squirrels. I think the seed might get wet depending on the angle of the rain and where the feeder is placed -- trees might protect it. Sorry I can't be more helpful. Good luck!
587748
I don't think crows can cling to the feeder. I use chicken scratch to feed jays and woodpeckers. Helps keep them away from my other feeders.
2250759
this feeder and have tons of birds with no squirrels. Are you using the right type of seed? The holes are smaller so you need something like finch food or thistle seed so the birds can get it. Hope it works out for you!
1629336
Sandra, We have found it can work for most any bird in this size range. The key seems to be where you want to use it and how big of an area you need to protect. So if you have a bluejay landing on a window sill and its "attacking" its own reflection that it sees in your window, this will keep them away. Just hang it where they're actively landing and they'll stay away for good. But if you have them flying in your back yard and hope that setting 1-2 ribbons out in a few areas of your land will keep them off your property, I don't think you'll get a positive result. Cheers, Jonathan Customer Care U-Spray Bugspray
1537797
I dont have cardinals in my neck of the woods, so I cannot tell you for sure. But we do have robins and towhees at the large end of the spectrum, and all manner of finches, chickadees and sparrows at the small end. All of them like to use this feeder, but the larger stellers jays, crows and other nuisances seem to stay away. It isn't large enough to accommodate them - and that's a good thing. To avoid marauding raccoons, I take the feeder in at night and put it up first thing in the morning. Hope this helps.
462239
Due to the small perches only sparrows and smaller birds feed. The feeder needs to be redesigned. The cage catches on the upper lip. It does not pevent squirrel as they stand on the bottom lip and push the cage up. It may have been desiged by someone who does not feed birds or the item was not field tested. I send the compaany an e-mail but I never heard from them.
975118
Only if it has a place to hang. What makes it work is if the cage has squirrel weight on it making it drop down to cover seed ports. I have the large feeder with the cardinal ring and this one. This one the flickers, creepers and blue jays particularly enjoy because they can hang on the cage in any position. Brome, to me, is the best feeders on the market! We live in a rural forested area and its not unusual to have up to 30 - 40 squirrels trying to do anything and everything to get in the feeders. They even wrap theirselves around the cardinal ring and nap. Their only success is to do a flying assault to knock seed out on the ground. Only if it has a place to hang. What makes it work is if the cage has squirrel weight on it making it drop down to cover seed ports. I have the large feeder with the cardinal ring and this one. This one the flickers, creepers and blue jays particularly enjoy because they can hang on the cage in any position. Brome, to me, is the best feeders on the market! We live in a rural forested area and its not unusual to have up to 30 - 40 squirrels trying to do anything and everything to get in the feeders. They even wrap theirselves around the cardinal ring and nap. Their only success is to do a... » Read More Only if it has a place to hang. What makes it work is if the cage has squirrel weight on it making it drop down to cover seed ports. I have the large feeder with the cardinal ring and this one. This one the flickers, creepers and blue jays particularly enjoy because they can hang on the cage in any position. Brome, to me, is the best feeders on the market! We live in a rural forested area and its not unusual to have up to 30 - 40 squirrels trying to do anything and everything to get in the feeders. They even wrap theirselves around the cardinal ring and nap. Their only success is to do a flying assault to knock seed out on the ground. « Show Less
939025
I don't have grackles, but it does keep out crows and jays. Even squirrels leave it (mostly) alone.
1401232
I bought mine for pigeons and it does not work very well. and I found one of my dogs with a squirrel in its mouth the other day, so not sure if it will scare them away.
331467
The Cardinals won't go near this bird feeder. I have two feeders and even the smaller birds will hardly touch this feeder, they prefer the standard feeder with an open tray, this one has elongated holes that the birds have to reach through while sitting on a spring loaded perch. The spring loaded perch will not support the larger birds like Cardinals, even when it is set to the maximum weight adjustment.
1612661
I've not had this particular feeder through the winter yet but I have on like it and it was fine, but I have a dome over top of it to help protect from weather. Since I have had this feeder, we have had some very heavy rains and the seed is dry. I've not seen any jays or other large birds attempting to use this feeder, it's been mostly smaller birds. The largest bird has been the red-wing black birds. Honestly, I can't recall any real problems with the larger birds. This one seems to be most attractive to the smaller ones. Hope this helps!