{"id":3053,"date":"2019-05-02T16:23:04","date_gmt":"2019-05-02T20:23:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vampstampnews.com\/wpbirdseed\/wordpress\/?p=3053"},"modified":"2024-05-10T17:50:09","modified_gmt":"2024-05-10T21:50:09","slug":"dried-mealworms-starlings-ervas-mealworm-feeder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/birdseedandbinoculars.com\/wordpress\/dried-mealworms-starlings-ervas-mealworm-feeder\/","title":{"rendered":"Erva’s Bluebird Feeder & Dried Mealworms"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Eastern
Eastern Bluebird in Adjusted Mealworm Feeder<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes a feeder works great right out of the box. But sometimes you need to make adjustments. I use Erva’s Starling Proof Mealworm Feeder<\/a> to offer dried mealworms to Eastern Bluebirds and Carolina Wrens. I like this bluebird feeder very much, but I think it is designed for live mealworms rather than dried. You might not think that would make a difference but it does. I needed to make a change to use Erva’s mealworm feeder with dried mealworms. (Don’t worry, it’s easy.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note: This type of feeder is sometimes alternatively called a “Erva Barrier Guarded Feeder.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span>Estimated reading time: <\/span>0<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Without alteration, this bluebird feeder keeps European Starlings about 90% out of dried mealworms. When used as-is, the bluebirds and wrens get the majority, which is hugely better than anything else I tried for offering dried mealworms previously<\/a>. But, wanting to more completely block out starlings, I’ve tweaked the feeder . . . using a carryout container! This made all the difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Update:<\/strong> Erva now sells a 1.5 cup metal replacement cup<\/a> with hardware to replace the smaller glass cup that comes with the feeder. The original glass cup is 3″ wide by 1″ deep inside. The larger replacement version is 4″ wide by 2″ deep inside. Below is my earlier 2019 DIY replacement method which as you will read, is even wider. If you are offering dried mealworms, the choice is yours!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Erva
Erva Mealworm Feeder<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Mealworms Around The Edges<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Erva’s bluebird feeder is a solid feeder. Its cage design keeps starlings from accessing the little glass bowl in the middle where the mealworms are placed. If I was offering live mealworms, I feel fairly confident that this would indeed work, because starlings can’t reach mealworms confined to the bowl. The glass surface should keep live mealworms from climbing out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"European
European Starling Grabbing Mealworms From the Edges<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The problem is that I am offering dried mealworms in Erva’s bluebird feeder and the bluebirds and wrens make a mess with them. They pull them out of the bowl and fling them around as they choose mealworms. After a few visits, the floor of the cage tends to be littered with dried mealworms and there is more on the floor than in the bowl. Starlings take advantage of this by hanging on the side, sticking their head in and grabbing the odds and ends of mealworms around the edges. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"First
First Row of the Feeder Taped Closed<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Closing Off Some of The Cage<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You might wonder, as I did, if you could cut off access to the cage floor by covering the bottom row of the mesh cage with something. I tried this, using layers of my favorite exterior grade super strong Scotch Super 88 black vinyl electrical tape. Didn’t work. Starlings simply reach in through the next row up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Creating a Saucer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

My next attempt to fix this was to use\na clear round take-out container cover to try and contain the\nscattered mealworms, attaching it between the glass bowl and the\nfeeder floor using the same screw that secures the bowl’s holder. It\nwas a bit like a saucer with a tea cup. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This did help keep more of the mealworms in toward the feeder’s center and out of reach. But because the lid was fairly shallow, quite a lot of them could still slip to the outer edges where starlings could get them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Feeder's
Bowl Replaced With Heavy Carryout Container<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Swapping Out the Bowl <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

My last attempt works better. This time, I used the deeper bottom of the takeout container and removed the glass bowl and its metal holder entirely. Instead, I carefully cut a very small hole in the center of the takeout container bottom. I kept the nut and screw that come with the feeder to hold the metal bowl holder in place, and used it to instead screw the takeout container to the floor of the feeder. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Nut
Nut on the Bottom of the Feeder Holds the Container in Place<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The temptation of course is to now put MORE mealworms into this larger container, but that would defeat the purpose. The idea here is to put just a couple handfuls of dried mealworms into the wider deeper container so their level within the container is much lower and they are more likely to stay within the takeout container.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Carolina
Carolina Wren Eating Mealworms From the Carryout Container<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

My Bluebird Feeder Tweak Worked!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Bluebirds and wrens seem to have no problem with my modification. The takeout container I used is 7 1\/4\u201d in diameter (or 6\u201d inside the rim) and is 1 3\/4\u201d deep. It is one of the fairly common heavy black ones and not flimsy. It is solid enough that it can stand up to a bird sitting on the edge. (Occasionally they instead choose to sit inside the container.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The birds zip in and eat mealworms as usual. The result though, is consistently fewer mealworms along the edges where starlings can grab them. There are almost no mealworms on the floor now so there is not much for a starling to eat. Between this and the weather getting warmer, the starling crowd seems to have moved on at last.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are looking for a bluebird feeder to use with dried mealworms, check out my review of Erva’s Bluebird Mealworm Feeder<\/a>. If you need more tips on starling problems, see my post on: Strategies to Keep Starlings Off Feeders.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Find the Erva Starling Proof Mealworm Feeder<\/a> on Amazon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nancie<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PS: I’ve started tossing a few peanuts in with the dried mealworms<\/a>. These don’t bother the bluebirds and it gives smaller birds, like Tufted Titmouse and Carolina Wren, a chance at peanuts the larger birds usually don’t share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n