Recruiting Warriors in the battle against S&S

[KathyF]

When we moved here 2 years ago, I noticed my neighbor 1 mile away had 3 trees full of nesting starlings. Uggghhh!! As I became more educated on S&S damage and put up my first PM house last year, it troubled me more & more when I walked past his house every day.

I befriended the elderly couple and we conversed about other things for awhile. Then one day on one of my long walks, I decided to take my totally useless CO2 pistol and see if I could get lucky and kill a starling that was stupid enough to get within arm's reach so that I could whack him with the gun (only chance I had of killing one with *that* gun).

The elderly gentleman asked me what I was doing and I told him, "trying to kill starlings", then told him the whole story about what they do to martins, BB, woodpeckers, etc. He and his wife are very well educated and wanted the BB's & woodpeckers back in their trees. So he invited me to start shooting and I brought my *real* starling killer and went to work.

And a few weeks later, he went to work killing them too. You see apparently, he used to love to hunt exotic game - buffalo, nilgei (sp?), etc., but now he's unable to due to his age. But, he's perfectly capable of going out on his front porch and practicing with his beautiful 12 gauge and reliving his younger days. He's having a blast and we've killed 24 to date, out of his trees. We tried trapping, but there are too many holes in the trees. We're making a significant impact - I saw a woodpecker land in one of his trees yesterday....and the BB are coming back to his yard.

And an elderly gentleman has found a way to enjoy his favorite pasttime again.

I've had a tougher time with other people and this one took some finesse (his wife initially was against it), but this is one story of which I'm very proud, esp. since the desirable birds are now coming back to his yard. Chalk one up for the good guys!!

[The Olsons]

Kathy,

This is a great story and I wish there were more people like you and your neighbor out there....thank you for sharing the story with us and I wish you both lots of luck with your hunting experiences and restoring your yards with beautiful songbirds

Astrid

[Guest]

Hey Kathy,

That is outstanding. Sounds like you recruited a real asset in our war. Did you say that you are a psychologist? Way to go!!!!


God bless those who sacrificed for our freedom,

[KathyF]

Thanks, Harley! No, no psychologist here ... I find that the most receptive people are just lonely and want someone to talk to. So it does take an investment of some time!

I walked by a PM house yesterday and saw 4 pair of starlings nesting in it....it gave me the willies to see them crawling all over it. 50 ft. away is the guy's PM house with 6 pair in it. So I went back today and took the information about S&S to the lady of the house.

She & her husband have actually been killing starlings, but didn't realize it was LEGAL to shoot them, so they'd been doing so, "under cover". It amazes me what people don't know!! She also didn't realize they might kill her PM's. As soon as I told her it was legal to shoot and they might kill her PM's, I could see that she was going to take action. She is not going to stand for this now!! She's a former guard at the max. security prison, so I have no doubts about her abilities. She invited me back this evening so I can tell her husband too. I'm taking my pellet rifle for that visit!

[Guest]

Outstanding Kathy!!!!!!

[Guest]

YOU GO GIRL!;)

That's a marvelous story, and I do believe, as someone else stated, that most folks have no clue about the damage these two intruders have caused.
Kathy, what kind of gun do you use? I'm really starting to think I should invest in one and learn how to use it well. I'm just afraid my skills aren't that good. I'm good with a handgun, but I doubt my ability with a pellet rifle.

[KathyF]

lilyrose,
We got a "RWS 850 Air Magnum" - the .177 caliber (from PyramidAir- with the RWS Superdome pellets. It takes CO2 bottles. I didn't like the "break barrel" type guns. This gun comes with 2 small cylinders where you can load 8 pellets in each (1 is your spare). We put a TASCO Pronghorn scope on it...it's very useful to have a scope! Don't even bother with the cheap Daisy pellets - they don't fly consistently. It was worth the extra $$ to buy the RWS pellets- Superdome, as they are more consistent within a 1" spread.

You can buy the CO2 bottles at Walmart too. My husband sited it in and after about 2 bottles of co2 and some practice I can hit the starlings pretty consistently. You can get the targets at Walmart too. I set them up the same distance as it would be to my PM house for practice. I recommend getting the targets that have the "flourescent" backing so you can easily see where your shots hit.

Good luck! Let me know if you have any more questions!

[Guest]

YOU GO GIRL!;)

That's a marvelous story, and I do believe, as someone else stated, that most folks have no clue about the damage these two intruders have caused.
Kathy, what kind of gun do you use? I'm really starting to think I should invest in one and learn how to use it well. I'm just afraid my skills aren't that good. I'm good with a handgun, but I doubt my ability with a pellet rifle.

Lillyrose a GAMO break open/single cocking action air rifle sends a pellet about 1100 feet per second. Cabelas has one on sale called the whisper that has a sound suppressor making the deed 50% quieter. Which ever rifle you get, buy a few different brands and style of pellets. See which pellets group the best on a paper plate. Always try to rest your rifle on a prop of some kind when shooting. Slowly exhale while slowly pulling the trigger to the point that the rifle going off is a surprise to you. Follow through the shot by continuing to aim through it. A scope makes sighting easier. High power is a hobby of mine. Good luck and put em in the ten ring/center mass.

[Guest]

Thanks guys!

[Julio]

Well this morning i trapped 2 Starlings , after having a flock of 30 sit on my martin housing . My small colony of now 55 birds adults and babies returned and an aerial fight/chase ensued, all starlings left. However it appears that a few returned this morning and found my Nestbox traps, and subsequently my lake turtles were fed. Good to know that responsible landlords like Kathy and many others still exist aware of the statistics and who think outside their own small world.

[Guest]

Here here Julio, very well said.

[KathyF]

Thank you Julio and Mr. WV.

Julio, that's a great idea to "feed the turtles" with the carcasses!

The neighbor I've been working with this weekend killed 17 starlings in his yard yesterday .... in one day. A little bit of education goes a long way.

His next door neighbor called me this afternoon when he heard about our "starling eradication efforts". He wants us to come help him too because he now has his first 2 pair of martins and the starlings are being a pain. He has a separate house that has 3 starling nests with babies in them. We're going to eliminate the babies this evening. It's not a fun task, but we do what we have to do.

That's 3 additional PM landlords in the last 2 months that have been "transformed". They're older guys - maybe they'll teach me how to shoot better.

[TrkrBob1949]

Once upon a time before SREHs were invented and all of my martin housing was made out of that starling attractant called wood, I shot 84 starlings and 16 house sparrows off of my occupied martin houses in one month. I lived in the country and was able to use a Ruger 77/22 .22 caliber scoped rifle. I was shooting off a bench and sandbags from inside my workshop. The starlings never knew what hit them.

Today I use a scoped Gamo Hunter in .22 caliber when shooting the S&S in town from my personal vehicle. Just like years past, they never know what hit them. At my own personal colony I use a Steve Kroenke 12 gauge with a 30 inch barrel. It has made some unbelievable shots at phenomenal ranges.

[Guest]

The neighbor I've been working with this weekend killed 17 starlings in his yard yesterday .... in one day. A little bit of education goes a long way.

That's 3 additional PM landlords in the last 2 months that have been "transformed". They're older guys - maybe they'll teach me how to shoot better.

WOOHOO. You may have a starling-free zone by the time it's all said and done. Way to go!