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I don’t think the size of the bird is particularly relevant as birds of the same size compete for the same nesting sites. The article gives the example of blue tits dominating willow and marsh tits by hoarding the bird feeder and kicking them out of their nesting sites. Both the willow and marsh tit are slightly bigger than the blue tit. It seems to me that your garden would also have this issue.

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A bird feeder is a very small location with an extremely high concentration of seeds. A garden, while small, is much larger than a feeder. I think less dominant birds would stand a much better chance of reaching the seeds in a spread out garden than they would at a feeder. Additionally, the plants in the garden offer cover for small birds to hide behind while they’re eating seeds on the ground. This should also help the less dominant birds survive.

Another factor is whether your practice also helps create additional nesting spots. Certain plants, leaving behind brush or downed trees, etc, can help create additional nesting sites, or leave ones that would otherwise be removed. For example, we maintain a few brush piles and downed trees rather than chipping everything. These make for busy way points where you’ll see less common visitors.

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