We have finally solved the Starling problem at our backyard feeders. A Northern Mockingbird has adopted our backyard and claimed it as his turf. He will not allow a Starling to even land on the fence and rest. He barely tolerates House Sparrows. He has shown up every morning for the last week and been a perfect guard-bird for out yard. And what attracted him and what keeps him here you ask? Why leftover cut up pepperoni pizza that we put out last week and he has now whittled down to the last 3 small pieces. Aside from the Mockingbird we have a pair of downys, a red-bellied and an occasional northern flicker plus the usual house sparrows and finches(gold and house), juncos and occasional robins. We have had one song sparrow come for a brief visit. I highly recommend a guard Mockingbird for your yard. (I am going to buy him another pizza) ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]