Goldfinch traffic jam

Building another highway to reduce traffic congestion is only a temporary fix, because, as research shows and most urban planners know, the traffic on the new highway quickly reaches capacity and you are soon back where you started. I have recently seen this principle at work in my birdwatching.

This winter, I have had up to forty Goldfinches in our yard at one time and they have kept me hopping to keep my single thistle feeder with its six perches filled. A glance through the binoculars, shows that there is an informal waiting line all day long to access one of these six perches. Clearly, I needed a new highway, er thistle feeder to handle my Goldfinch traffic jam. That meant a trip to the store for another thistle feeder, but to keep within our budget, I chose another six perch model, but twelve perches is better than six, right? Now have room for twelve Goldfinches to feed at one time. I reasoned that this should reduce crowding and make room for not only more Goldfinches, but, just as importantly, some of the other bird species that use our feeders. I certainly like Goldfinches, but I would also like to see other birds in my birding binoculars and, for that, I need to reduce some crowding at the feeders.

It’s not working. A recent check with my compact binoculars showed some thirty Goldfinches perched atop the roofs of several feeders waiting to access one of the twelve perches on the thistle feeders. All I have done is attract more Goldfinches instead of reducing crowding. I have created a Goldfinch monster.