proper burial

deacdiddy · Thu May 12, 2011 6:21 am

After a peaceful month of watching my gourds and enjoying my SY pair for the last 10 days, all of the sudden, yesterday 6 starlings showed up and immediately began nesting. They were able to get in the sreh easily. These sreh have no porches so I thought that would be impossible.. Anyway I set up in the bushes this am and blasted 2 of them to kingdom come..I left them hanging upside down on my snake netting...will the others get the message?

or should they be buried at sea

JamesinIA · Thu May 12, 2011 6:30 am

When I shoot starlings that are in my yard, I just leave them there and use them for decoys. The others don't seem to care if they are dead or alive and sometimes I will either get their mate or friend.

Burial at sea with the other trash might be a good option.....

Guest · Thu May 12, 2011 6:43 am

Hang them from a string from the neck, it may not scare the starlings but you might feel better. I have an S&S with a round hole, they go there first I guess because it is easier to get in.

jspurgin · Thu May 12, 2011 9:26 am

I too have SREH with no porches, and I always seem to get one starling that is small enough to enter and try to nest. After I get my husband (a better shot than I) to get rid of the one or two that can enter the gourds, I don't have any more trouble. Good luck

deacdiddy · Thu May 12, 2011 11:30 am

These 2 I killed this am were pretty small. Can they reproduce in the same season they are hatched..that would be another reason to pinch the nestlings heads off...

Courtney-NC · Thu May 12, 2011 2:10 pm

I had the same problem this morning. Out of nowhere 4 starlings appeared and one bull HOSP, which tried to get into my chickadee nestbox. There was a small female needlebeak among the group of 4 and she was able to breach a crescent with a flush porch. I closed off those gourds so the only ones left open were 3 WDCs which I have never seen breached. That female and another male decided to stop by my Dew Drop Inn and stay awhile.

Unfortunately, there was no time for pictures, a ceremony, or a white sheet for the bodies, so you'll have to take my word for it.

There is still one large male on the prowl that has yet to check out the NBT. I expect I might get him in a couple of days.

As far as the HOSP goes, there is a nice ground trap waiting for him whenever he gets hungry or wants to get a few feathers for a nest.

gwarnerjr · Thu May 12, 2011 4:58 pm

I usually just throw them out in the corn field and the buzzards take care of them.

Siberman · Thu May 12, 2011 5:52 pm

Bury them in the garden. Free fertilizer.

Courtney-NC · Fri May 13, 2011 8:18 am

It is absolutely crawling with starlings around here today. I don't know what happened and where they came from but they are poking around my site non-stop. They cannot get in but they still hang around and recruit others. Ugh!

I think I am going to extend the porch on the NBT to make it more attractive.