I have a blackbird ....

[Tail End Charlie]

.. who I think is mentally ill. For the last week a male blackbird has been jumping from a bush against one of my windows towards the top. It makes a knocking sound and starts early (I first noticed it when it woke me up) and carries on throughout the day, with not much of a rest. It's still doing it as I type. Any ideas as to why it's doing it? I thought there may be some food source, but there doesn't appear to be anything. I then thought it might have seen a painting of a bowl of fruit I have, but I moved that and it still does it. Baffling.

 

[biggs682]

Very strange indeed

 

[Glow worm]

Perhaps he's seeing a rival male reflected back at him in the window and having a go. I've heard some birds do this, blue tits and vehiicle wing mirrors being a known phenomenon.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

Perhaps he's seeing a rival male reflected back at him in the window and having a go. I've heard some birds do this, blue tits and vehiicle wing mirrors being a known phenomenon.

That could make sense, sort of "you looking at my bird?" !!

 

[nickyboy]

Perhaps he's seeing a rival male reflected back at him in the window and having a go. I've heard some birds do this, blue tits and vehiicle wing mirrors being a known phenomenon.

I think that is it. They are particularly territorial at this time of year too, maybe explaining why it's a recent phenomenon

 

[DCLane]

Put a photo of a cat up. That might solve it.

 

[slowmotion]

A silhouette of an owl might work.

 

[Welsh wheels]

Tell him to stop looking at your bird

 

[welsh dragon]

They see their own reflection and think it is a rival bird. We get blackbirds and crows and various other birds that all do the same thing during mating season. Drives me nuts hearing it all day, and they make a terrible mess of the windows.

 

[Dave 123]

Perhaps he's seeing a rival male reflected back at him in the window and having a go. I've heard some birds do this, blue tits and vehiicle wing mirrors being a known phenomenon.

Someone I used to work with had a sister and brother in law who had ££££
They bought a hobby farm in Yorkshire. He was a big business man who drove a big shiny BMW.

They bought peacocks. The birds scratched the living daylights out of the rival bird who kept standing it's ground.... the reflection in the beemer.

Didn't do a lot for the paint job.

 

[PeteXXX]

.. who I think is mentally ill. Baffling.

Not mentally ill, or baffling, just horny..
Spring is in the air!

 

[Drago]

The thread title is misleading. I clicked gleefully expecting to see pictures of a thermonuclear powered Honda motorcycle.

 

[Illaveago]

.. who I think is mentally ill. For the last week a male blackbird has been jumping from a bush against one of my windows towards the top. It makes a knocking sound and starts early (I first noticed it when it woke me up) and carries on throughout the day, with not much of a rest. It's still doing it as I type. Any ideas as to why it's doing it? I thought there may be some food source, but there doesn't appear to be anything. I then thought it might have seen a painting of a bowl of fruit I have, but I moved that and it still does it. Baffling.

I see that other people have mentioned that it could be his reflection that he is going for . My wife told me a similar story of a male Pheasant who would spend all day strutting up and down trying to out do the pheasant he could see reflected in the glass.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Lots of info here: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/why-birds-hit-windows-and-how-you-can-help-prevent-it/

(Apparently putting up a stencil of a hawk doesn't really work)

 

[Wixsteman]

When we got new windows fitted we had a few different birds fly into them one wood pigeon left a clear imprint of its wings on the glass..... soon stops when you accidentally forget to clean the windows . Or as I tell my wife, it’s for the birds safety