The Nyjer Feeder

As reported last Thursday, the chaffinches have discovered the nyjer feeder and are doing their best to empty it but now....

....they have competition in the form of both a male and....

....a female house sparrow.

I don't understand what's going on! The feeder has been available most of the winter and we've been watching it in the hope of seeing the usual nyjer clients, namely goldfinches and siskins, and hardly seen any birds using it. So why are the other birds suddenly so interested?

Happily, the feeder is also being visited by a very handsome pair of siskins but....

....the goldfinches, while still around, seem to be ignoring it. Instead, we observed a pair poking around the woodwork on the side of the garage. We couldn't work out what they were up to until....

....a close-up revealed that they were looking for and collecting spiders' web, presumably to use in their nest building.