Many people enjoy putting out birdseed for their feathered neighbors. However, squirrels also are attracted to the food and squirrels, like many animals, are very resourceful and determined when it comes to securing food. Their ability to jump and climb allows them to easily get into bird feeders, even those that people have tried to strategically place out of their reach. Putting out separate squirrel feeders that are conveniently located for them also does not prevent them from raiding bird feeders. Bird lovers have, in turn, over the years devised better feeders. Primary bird feeders squirrel proof strategies are to:
Put bird feeders away from trees or branches within jumping distance for squirrels. This is often done by mounting feeders on poles that are set in or on the ground. Of course, this presents a new problem: the squirrels can try to climb the bird feeder poles! A couple of things can be done to make it hard for the squirrels to climb up to the feeder. Some people have tried adding vaseline to a pole to make it too slippery to climb, but this isn't effective for long and is certainly messy. PVC piping has also been used to support pole-mounted feeders since its slick surface is hard to climb.
Add physical barriers like squirrel baffles to a bird feeder pole and/or add wire caging around the feeder housing. Squirrel baffles are commonly used to deter the critters from climbing up the pole for a pole-mounted feeder since they are cheap. These tend to be only partially effective by themselves, though. You would think that wire cages around tubular feeders would keep the squirrels from being able to reach the birdseed. These are not as attractive aesthetically, which is annoying if you would like to photograph your bird buddies. The wire cages can also be defeated by persistent squirrels. If you don't believe me, just try a quick search on YouTube for bird feeders squirrel proof.
Use feeders with weight sensors. Sophisticated bird feeders featuring weight sensitive perches have also been introduced. These can sense the weight of a squirrel and respond by closing feed ports or tipping or spinning the feeder. Closing the ports makes it hard for a squirrel to steal birdseed and tipping or spinning motions make it hard for a squirrel to stay mounted on the feeder. Closing access ports is not always as effective as it sounds, however, since squirrels can figure out how to swing these models sideways to shake the seeds out. Again, squirrels like other animals are very determined when it comes to securing food! Feeders that are designed to spin when the weight of a squirrel is detected can effectively drive the squirrel off without harming it. These are also more expensive to buy, but can be worth it in savings on birdseed and aggravation. Many people also like watching the squirrels take a spin on the feeder!
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