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Starlings in coop

 
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foraging trees chicken
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I live in a big wheat-growing area, and the starling population is always pretty high. They've started to raid my coop as an easy source of food.

When they did this in the past, I put some cds in the coop. It only worked for like a week. Should I try again? I was thinking maybe I could add a bird feeder to the outside of my garden shed (right next to the coop) to distract them. Is this a bad idea?

Any advice is appreciated, because I am at a loss.
 
pollinator
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Location: Oz; Centre South
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I love birds, but they can be a pest. . . any chance the chickens(?) could be fed their grain/rations inside, before being let out to range?
I've used bits of audio tape strung from fruit tree branches, ditto alfoil, or can lids - anything that flashes.  In a burst of inspiration, is your coop sized such that black cotton could be strung across in different directions?  Looking out to provide enough headroom for you though!   Apart from that wire mesh or the lightest grade of shade-cloth might be other solutions.  How about one of those fake hawks that hang from a tall pole and 'fly' in the wind - my chooks used to hide if a hawk appeared, so maybe some experimentation with placement.  I've also seen fake owls for the same purpose, locally there was one on a TV antenna, but the pigeons just cosied up to it - questionable effectiveness.  Good luck.  As you see I have a butterfly brain.
It will be interesting to see suggestions from others
 
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Location: Cache Valley, zone 4b, Irrigated, 9" rain in badlands.
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Half inch hardware cloth will keep out starlings, house sparrows, weasels, rats, skunks, raccoons, etc.
 
Allen Carlson
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I think a mesh would be the easiest and cheapest way to do it, but would it hold in heavy snow?
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