DSC03927 frost on holly
Are we harming birds by overfeeding them? We are still being advised again and again in garden magazines and so on to feed the birds yet I see so many photographs of eg. robins that look so fat and overfed that they appear clumsey and top heavy. Not so long ago I read in a comprehensive science book about birds how they had spent many centuries refining their weight and shapes to make them light for the long journeys they undertake in flight. When I had a young robin in the garden in the summer it was slender and proportionate in shape such as most robins used to be. It was so delicate and quiet I thought for a moment it was a butterfly. As such it was well protected from predators. Sadly the robin stopped coming to our garden within a few days despite all the bird friendly plants I grow for them. I guess they went to gardens where people were feeding them loads of nuts etc. As the result they cease to forage for themselves and to help us by feeding on aphids etc. If this continues they will not pass on those skills to future geneations. I'm told that in Australia people are discouraged from feeding birds at all. I'm suggesting we only feed them with discretion when they appear in real need rather than in excess.
I'm afraid I am not able to follow any more members or post to groups.
DSC03927 frost on holly
Are we harming birds by overfeeding them? We are still being advised again and again in garden magazines and so on to feed the birds yet I see so many photographs of eg. robins that look so fat and overfed that they appear clumsey and top heavy. Not so long ago I read in a comprehensive science book about birds how they had spent many centuries refining their weight and shapes to make them light for the long journeys they undertake in flight. When I had a young robin in the garden in the summer it was slender and proportionate in shape such as most robins used to be. It was so delicate and quiet I thought for a moment it was a butterfly. As such it was well protected from predators. Sadly the robin stopped coming to our garden within a few days despite all the bird friendly plants I grow for them. I guess they went to gardens where people were feeding them loads of nuts etc. As the result they cease to forage for themselves and to help us by feeding on aphids etc. If this continues they will not pass on those skills to future geneations. I'm told that in Australia people are discouraged from feeding birds at all. I'm suggesting we only feed them with discretion when they appear in real need rather than in excess.
I'm afraid I am not able to follow any more members or post to groups.