Use this Cheap and Easy Trick to Keep House Sparrows Away from your Bird Feeders

House Sparrows can be aggressive and numerous, and they can easily take over your bird feeders. In North America, they are invasive, and disliked by many backyard birders. In this video, I test a quick and cheap way to discourage house sparrows from visiting a bird feeder, using fishing line.
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[@tvalkyrie]

Weight them down w/ a washer. It works, my Dad has used this for years. Thanks for bringing this subject up. 💕

[@Oldman808]

I don’t understand why so many people hate house sparrows and squirrels. I enjoy watching both from my deck as I drink coffee early mornings. Same with accipiters. On rare occasions, I’ve seen a sparrow hawk catch a redbird.

[@AlizaJayne]

Same. I do have a squirrel proof feeder that is awesome and actually works so that is nice because then the birds have stuff to eat when I’m not around. But when I’m home and see the squirrels around I throw out peanuts for them. And I had no idea people didn’t like house sparrows. It’s not their fault they are abundant and earthy colored. They gotta eat too… just seems sort of weird and mean to only like some birds and to purposefully keep sparrows away!?

[@MegInWhispers]

because they're a non native invasive species that are aggressive and kill cavity nesting bird babies, like eastern bluebirds

[@WhistlesToAnimals]

I love squirrels, but they can damage feeders and some people are on a fixed income so bird feed can be expensive for them (I imagine lots of people that feed birds are retirement age and around the house more). When you are trying to feed native birds, the house sparrows will chase off everything they can (too much to list). Imagine you set up a wedding party, then a bunch of bullies chase off everyone you wanted, and eat everything in huge numbers. It's also not so much about what I or others like, but what is good for the environment and the ecosystem and trying to preserve species. Not to mention knowing about how many of our native species will get killed in their own native land while nesting. We know it isn't their fault, no one said that, but it isn't the fault of every species of bird that they chase off or kill off either.

[@snowyowl5556]

Well sounds like you're in Europe where they're native so you shouldn't have a problem with them. Here we have problems with them because they're invasive and kill off natives.

[@AlizaJayne]

@@MegInWhispers Is it their fault they are non native?

[@billgrindler4653]

Has anyone had long-term success using this method? I've always had House Sparrows but this year I'm inundated with them. They are mobbing my feeders and all other birds have been driven away.

[@patd6370]

House Sparrows are an invasive species who compete with native songbirds for nesting cavities.

[@oh_k8]

So? They're better than us.😢

[@kylegage87]

Nice video (as usual!) & good idea. Many house sparrow deterrents work…temporarily. Eventually they become used to the deterrent in my experience. I use the fishing line trick on nestboxes early in the year but they eventually try to move in. As I replied to a comment below, the main problem with house sparrows is that they aggressively take over nestboxes sometimes killing adults and/or young bluebirds, tree swallows, house wrens etc. After never having too much of a house sparrow problem at our current home, suddenly this year I was inundated with them. They attacked and blinded in one eye a female bluebird while she was incubating. She was able to raise that brood to fledging luckily but while she was incubating a 2nd clutch a sparrow killed her. Another female was attacked & her bill severely damaged & a nestling killed. Thankfully she’s learned to adapt & has nested twice this year. If house sparrows take over a nestbox and you remove their nest, particularly if it has eggs or young in it, the adults (usually the male) will often go on a “rampage” & attack other nearby nesters sometimes killing the adults or young & destroying eggs. If I don’t catch them at a house before they’ve laid eggs I will let them have that house but I will poke holes in the ends of their eggs so they don’t hatch. A very tricky bird to deal with & I give them credit for their adaptability but they should not be allowed to breed & imperil our native species!

[@cazu2479]

Yeah and like pigeons, starlings, etc killing them doesn’t decrease their population. I learned that they will just breed like crazy to fill up the temporary void. They’re difficult to get rid of

[@wadeS6366]

That's just awful. There's so much more to this than a bird feeder. I'm taking notes.

[@kiethj7]

If only we could train those outdoor cats to only hunt sparrows On a serious note. Please keep your cats indoors. They are the number #1 killer of native birds

[@nssoutdoors1869]

I’ve actually had great luck spending an hour each day hiding by the feeder with a BB gun, they dwindle in population pretty quickly. Now what cazu said is true, there are tons more that come in their place at a couple of points in the year, but it is very manageable if you stay on top of it.

[@brianbeidle8520]

@@cazu2479 The house sparrow takes a few years of year round trapping to decrease their numbers. One yard, one bird house can help. I do about 18 birdhouses and no sparrows use them sucessfully, but natives do. Took about 200 sparrows in 5 years. I still get some... but so many natives now. Get an ally or two so you can help them, trap with/for them, and expand trapping range.

[@thatdogsaliar2286]

Right before taking out my 12 gauge I watched this video . Thank you👍

[@rdmetzger1]

It dawned on me today that the sparrows probably think they are spider webs.

[@karenward7969]

Another site I looked at warned that fishing line isn't good because birds can get tangled in it. Larger strings apparently work just fine.

[@chriscarlsen2100]

Isn't fishing line dangerous for birds, couldn't they get tangled in it? They do when people have their lines break fishing.

[@RottiesTrue]

This is why halos are created with anchor weights pulling them down and making them taunt.

[@brianbeidle8520]

I also use this method. Have seen shoe string, fine picture hanging wire, and fishing lines work. Use of a washer or metal nut helps to ensure they stay straight and are less likely to trap a bird.

[@GRMacGirl]

I have had good luck with this but… 1. I am using shiny silver wire (less chance of them getting tangled in it) 2. I have relatively heavy metal bolts attached to the bottom of each wire. 3. The 4 wires are hung at regular intervals from the edge of the weather dome above the feeder - this keeps the wires out away from the feeder a few inches and allows them to dangle freely. I do take them down temporarily on windy days. We occasionally get a house sparrow or two that go through or around, the rest are put off and just feed on the ground below. All of our other birds are undeterred.

[@johncostigan6160]

Thanks for the tip! I tried giving the house sparrows a stern talking-to, but they are very headstrong...

[@edwardwright7295]

Do you know if I can get a bird feeder to help get rid of the grasshoppers that's in my yard?

[@MaidenBklyn]

i would like to know how to keep Mourning Doves away more than sparrows!

[@chriscarlsen2100]

Me too!!

[@oh_k8]

That's mean. 😢

[@zthomasack]

Oh, but their sound is so gentle. I'd trade my sparrows for your mourning doves in a heartbeat.

[@TheBeachMawMaw]

Cool Derek ! Now if we could figure out something to keep squirrels away. Lol Always good stuff on your channel!! 🌻☀️

[@greggarland5620]

I use hobby wire or picture frame wire hung from a coat hanger i made into a round halo. Look up Magic Halo

[@marywinsor6777]

I have tried the fishing line, taking away the seed and only keeping up Nyger see, emptied the bird bath. Nothing has worked! They went after nyger seed even though I read that they don’t like it 🤷‍♀️guess Cali Sparrows are different

[@jolenebauser408]

I’m surprised at how long the chickadees stay at your feeders. With mine they fly to the feeder and grab a sunflower and they fly away quickly! Lol. I am going to try this. I have way to many sparrows! I’ll let you know how it works.

[@wendyrobertson2404]

Wonder if they'll think it's a spider web?

[@rerolley]

I tried that a few years back. Didn't seem to help much. Also got a red-winged blackbird tangled up in the fishing line. Even tried house sparrow halos with weighs tied to the fishing line.

[@johnsoleimanian]

I do this with weed-wacker/trimmer line. It's thicker and stiffer so doesn't blow out of the way as as easily, most importantly its safer to the birds because it's much harder to get tangled up around itself or around birds... Fishing line becomes a bird trap+ noose if you weigh it down or make it too long

[@WhistlesToAnimals]

I tried something similar years back. To be fair, it wasn't exactly as you described. It was a gazebo feeder that had thin rope running from the roof corners to the space between the perching area. It worked for a little bit, but then they got used to it and continued. I always thought that this was a non permanent fix as these birds are very adaptive. Again, my test was a little bit different. If your version works longer, keep us up to date.

[@BadgerlandBirding]

So it was rope as opposed to fishing line? Seems like fishing line has certain properties they don't like. That's interesting they got used to it, but that it worked at first.

[@WhistlesToAnimals]

@@BadgerlandBirding I suppose I could try different variations, but I've seen these birds overcome things you can't imagine! I'll try the fishing line with little washers or without. For my other feeders, I've removed the perches and decreased the port size so that only birds that can cling better or have smaller heads can access the feeders. And my tiny log suet feeder has downward facing ports so that sparrows can't cling to it. I'm trying! There comes a point when if you are feeding X amount of house sparrows for every native species, you wonder if you are doing good or bad for the ecosystem--I've wondered about that one every day!

[@fixineminNO]

Worked last year with a nut on one end, kept sparrows away, but now they’re used to it.

[@thegman4664]

Holy crap this worked instantly and I immediately had a chickadee on my feeder no sparrows , i just used 4lb purple Stren

[@bigkahuna5477]

Hey, I saw a short article about you guys in Bird Watching the October 2022 magazine. Way to go, congratulations!

[@BadgerlandBirding]

Thank you!

[@TomBot22]

Very useful info 👍. My feeders are getting swamped by house sparrows at the moment and I've ordered some fishing line and keeping my fingers crossed!

[@bucsam1660]

I tried it today, and for about 6 hours they didn't go near the hanging feeder, about 15 minutes ago, I saw one on it. I may add more lines.

[@reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee2]

I've tried this for the last couple months and it works! I don't have nearly as many house sparrows and finches at the bird feeder. There are a few that figured it out and still hang out on the feeder. I don't have to fill up the feeder every other day now. It's very interesting how they try to fly on the bird feeder and freak out. Meanwhile, all of the cardinals, blue jays, and a couple new ones can enjoy the feeder without the bully birds. Amazing!

[@larryw380]

In addition to the fishing line, don’t feed mixed seed. Use sunflower safflower and thistle seed. Cracked corn and millet attract less desirable birds.

[@syndicateofsurf1367]

This has cured my sparrow problem and I had a lot of sparrows! I have 2 feeders side by side about 2 feet apart. I wired the one with fish line and left the other alone so the sparrows could have a separate feeder. It's been weeks now and I rarely ever see a sparrow at either feeder. Now it's nothing but woodpeckers, chickadees, nuthatches and titmice! Thank you!

[@jeffh3409]

Does it deter cardinals? My feeders hang on branches. Can I tie the string to the branches or it needs to be directly on the feeder to work?

[@APoorFellow]

I catch them and kiss them. Hehe no im jk

[@BadgerlandBirding]

You do you and don’t let the naysayers stop you

[@BenSlover1]

You might like my house sparrow-proof mealworm feeder shown on my channel.

[@adriennelee6065]

I've had great success with halos over my feeders, except this summer. Then again, this was the first year I had feeders up in the summer, and I think the HOSP fledglings were a bit less "wary" than the adults. I also use seed logs instead of loose seed feeders. My halos are built with a squirrel baffle over the feeder, and crafting wire with a weight on the bottom, so the birds won't get tangled up in the line. My cardinals, chickadees and house finches don't mind the halos at all!

[@Ahiebert2829]

House sparrows don’t have bad eyesight. I had one for a pet and it flew in the dark.

[@zdravaumetnica]

Simple and useful 👍

[@FernandoMartinez-ms6ls]

Que buena idea!

[@BadgerlandBirding]

Gracias!

[@jmarylastone]

could they think it is a spider web?? I know birds eat spiders but maybe maybe maybe they think it is a web

[@BadgerlandBirding]

Maybe…but they didn’t seem to try to pick at it or anything

[@herman58100]

I am going to try that tomorrow... I will get back to your channel and let you know how we did. Thanks

[@BadgerlandBirding]

Please do!

[@lorrainejsuhrada5816]

DON'T MIND SPARROWS IT'S SQUIRRELS THAT PISS ME OFF THEY EAT EVERY THING TIPS TO DEAL WITH THEM WOULD BE APPRECIATED. LOVE YOUR VIDEO S

[@MegInWhispers]

do you have squirrel baffles?

[@nancywhite2014]

I wonder if it would work on blue bird houses

[@kedro5]

I've read not to use fishing wire as birds can get tangled in them. I use very thin-gauge (28 AWG) metal wire which you can find at the hardware or hobby store. I've fashioned a hoop out of an old wire clothes hangar which I put over my hopper feeder, and I have the wires weighted with hardware nuts. 95% of the local house sparrows get spooked by it and avoid the feeder!

[@ArianaSarahaFlightBehavior]

Important: don’t use the halos during house sparrow fledgling season, or the younglings may try things their parents wouldn’t (and then pass on this new/learned behavior) Also, as per this other video, fishing line is not recommended: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnnVnZSCfMqeppI

[@birdman5223]

Very interesting 👍🏻 Good Stuff

[@MindKontrolleProject]

House sparrows... mitigation exercises in futility., you will always have that red-headed step child asking for money

[@skyhigh6]

I tried this trick. I'm in a constant battle with the common Eurasia house sparrows. Of the three feeders I have one feeder, in particular, is the target of the greedy little terrorists. They will empty that feeder in one day. And the cost of bird feed has gone up 50%. I tied 6 strings of monofilament fishing line to the feeder so it dangles down. I sit back and watched. The sparrows did not like it, as soon as the touch the line they flew off. The blue Jay's, chickadees finches had no issue with. Thanks for the tip.

[@Seanscichlids]

Used green plastic line. Worked for all of 5 minutes. Sucks sparrows are such small birds that it's hard to block them.

[@marybowden1384]

you need to add a washer to the end of the fish line. you need to place a bucket or garbage can under the feeders so the sparrows dont come around.

[@Grateful_Dad_54]

Great idea! Thanks! 👌🏼

[@edwardmiller411]

I tried this, an it works like a charm. I used very light weight shinny wire. However I haven't had any songbirds yet.

[@jimgresham5529]

Add some fishing line weights to the bottom of the strings so they hang straight down.

[@tomwilliams6537]

Try a spot of hot glue to secure the fishing line where you want it to stay.

[@jimweigand8937]

Maybe you could put fish weights on the fish line

[@jn2898]

What if a bird gets tangled in the line

[@jn2898]

How do I keep finches from my feeder? they are like a mob out there

[@bebeautiful6613]

That’s almost funny. 😉 most of us want the finches.❤ ☺️ I’m trying to get rid of the house sparrows, so the finches will come back. The house sparrows are so flipping mean to the finches. 😢 a few minutes ago I was so excited to see a Finch outside, and the dang house sparrow came and beat it up again. 😢😢😢

[@nathanwebb4836]

That's an awesome idea for how to deter house sparrows.

[@bucsam1660]

Great idea! Thanks

[@oh_k8]

I will feed them.😢

[@ChiChi-yg9ps]

They are very invasive in the US and kill a lot of native birds

[@Ahiebert2829]

I love house sparrows. I watch videos like this to see what not to do to keep house sparrows away. The house sparrows are not aggressive. In fact they stick to themselves.

[@janicemagers6079]

House sparrows are very aggressive and they take over!😢

[@kedro5]

They may not be agressive at the feeder, but they definitely are aggressive when it comes to nesting around other native birds.

[@michellebenedict7898]

They are like rats of the bird species. Obnoxious

[@nesthollow5159]

The big danger with the loose strands like this is that native birds can get tangled in this. If you can tighten both ends, it's safer. It's just one of those things you have to be really careful about because once something goes wrong, it can be really heartbreaking to deal with.

[@oh_k8]

Would you prefer rats at your feeder, over house sparrows? Seriously, snooty birders need to take a seat.

[@BadgerlandBirding]

…not sure what you’re trying to say 🤷‍♂️

[@oh_k8]

@@BadgerlandBirding The house sparrows clean up waste seeds that fall to the ground that otherwise would attract rats, mice and voles. Is that what you would prefer over house sparrows? Snooty birders have vilified introduced species for almost half a century, and for those of us who listen to your nonsense 😡, only to find out that these introduced species were not as bad as you claimed, only to inspire generations of ignorant people who persecute them for many more generations to come. It's very difficult to undo ignorance, once it spreads.

[@kirbyweisgerbet9540]

Rats ….really ….Ridiculous comment

[@michellebenedict7898]

House sparrows ARE like rats in my opinion.

[@ardenvlasich2595]

HEY!!! THE SPARROWS DESERVE FOOD TOO SO PLEASE LET THEM HAVE FOOD

[@khsuki1]

No they don't they kill native birds.

[@jameshitt3263]

Pfft, they can get by just fine on their own, the cruel nasty little buggers.