Colour Feeding Goldfinches

[fireman 10,869]

4 hours ago, Bangersanmash said:

Primrose and safflower with dog rose will give the mask a bright deep red pigment fireman. Think it's safer nowa days to buy in than going foraging with all the pesticides around specially when you've got expensive birds 

I do get where your coming from Bangers and  quality food is quality food ,but if you have to walk or drive that bit further to collect it then that is what needs to be done. some  organic farms would welcome someone i;m sure asking to forage wild food for breeding birds due to it being safer for them,explain your case and away you'd be.I used to visit many allotments asking for food for my birds as most of the weeds they were pulling out was just what i wanted,get chatting to the allotment owners and most never use sprays or harmful shit and many a time i came away with a few gifted veg and other what nots as well as bird food..

[fireman 10,869]

On 17/05/2021 at 18:06, gnipper said:

I've found they go red enough when given dark greens like dandelion leaves and broccoli etc.

Tell you what gnipper that is a cracking coloured bird, crisp and clean  

[gnipper 6,426]

1 hour ago, fireman said:

Tell you what gnipper that is a cracking coloured bird, crisp and clean  

I'm waiting on a clutch off his parents hatching at the moment, hopefully get a few more like him.

[Bangersanmash 2,794]

9 hours ago, fireman said:

I do get where your coming from Bangers and  quality food is quality food ,but if you have to walk or drive that bit further to collect it then that is what needs to be done. some  organic farms would welcome someone i;m sure asking to forage wild food for breeding birds due to it being safer for them,explain your case and away you'd be.I used to visit many allotments asking for food for my birds as most of the weeds they were pulling out was just what i wanted,get chatting to the allotment owners and most never use sprays or harmful shit and many a time i came away with a few gifted veg and other what nots as well as bird food..

Nowa days there using sprays that doesn't harm the vegetables ive got a plot myself where I keep my modern game birds mate. Alot round there use sprays I've seen them with the back packs on lol. It's crazy no one wants to put the efforts in anymore me and my grandad used to have a full day on weeding getting the soil pucka. Sorting through the soil getting the biggish stones out. An alot of farmers are using some kind of sprays you've just got to be carefull mate. A get dandelions doc dog rose an  teasels all from my garden. A just order in safflower , blue maw , fionopaddy  then a put cumin paprika chilli flakes and a few more herbs in with my insect egg food an Perle morbide then a crush a pack of dry meal worm up they go in then a get a cuttlefish an scrap it till it's like dust an last of all veg an daily essentials . A make it up for week an abit more then freeze in tubs all ready for each day. 

[fireman 10,869]

12 hours ago, Bangersanmash said:

Nowa days there using sprays that doesn't harm the vegetables ive got a plot myself where I keep my modern game birds mate. Alot round there use sprays I've seen them with the back packs on lol. It's crazy no one wants to put the efforts in anymore me and my grandad used to have a full day on weeding getting the soil pucka. Sorting through the soil getting the biggish stones out. An alot of farmers are using some kind of sprays you've just got to be carefull mate. A get dandelions doc dog rose an  teasels all from my garden. A just order in safflower , blue maw , fionopaddy  then a put cumin paprika chilli flakes and a few more herbs in with my insect egg food an Perle morbide then a crush a pack of dry meal worm up they go in then a get a cuttlefish an scrap it till it's like dust an last of all veg an daily essentials . A make it up for week an abit more then freeze in tubs all ready for each day. 

Well you get out what you put in that much is so true with captive  birds and it shows your effort in your stock mate......

[Bangersanmash 2,794]

On 27/09/2015 at 20:01, morton said:

Its impossible to obtain the colour of a wild bird in a captive environment,thus the need for the use of supplements.

A know it's an old topic this but it's true what Morton says you'll never get captive bred birds to look like the wild british native birds. We had a pair of bully's in the back garden yesterday mooching through the conifers. Picking away at the bugs on the conifers. Something I've never seen before the bullfinches hovering like a hummingbird nipping away at the bugs. Back to the colour the hen bullfinch was something else. When she'd rest up for a second on one of the conifer branches her chest was like a bronze colour in the sunlight stunning and the chest on the cock bird was even more stunning light hitting top of his black head shine on it.