A feeder on a pole at the back of the yard means you see birds as shapes. You know something's there, you go to the window, and it's gone before you get a look at it. Stick this one to the glass and the bird is forty centimetres from your face with a sheet of acrylic in between — close enough to see the markings on a silvereye and the dust on a wren's back. It is the same hobby, from a completely different distance, and it costs you one window and a handful of seed.

Why It Stands Out

• You watch from inside — the whole point. No hide, no binoculars, no walking out and scaring everything off the feeder.
• Clear acrylic all the way round, including the floor of the tray, so you see the bird from the side, from above and from underneath as it stands on the seed.
• Three suction cups, not two — a triangle holds a loaded tray far better than a pair does, and the third cup is what stops it rotating slowly off the glass.
• A pitched roof over the tray that keeps the worst of the rain off the seed and gives the birds somewhere to shelter while they feed.
• 15 cm wide — big enough for a handful of seed and two small birds at once, small enough that it isn't a slab stuck on your window.
• Nothing to assemble — press the cups on, tip the seed in, walk away.
• It works in a unit — if you have a window and no garden, this is the only bird feeder that still makes sense.

Where to Stick It

• On the kitchen window above the sink — the single best spot, because you're standing there several times a day without planning to be.
• Beside the desk, if you work from home and the window faces the garden.
• On a child's bedroom window, low enough that they can see into the tray without being lifted.
• Facing the garden beds rather than the street, so the birds already working your grevilleas have a short hop to it.
• On a balcony door or a unit window, where there's no garden at all and nowhere to hang a feeder.
• On a sheltered window under the eaves, out of the full western sun and the worst of the driving rain.
• At a window the cat can watch from inside — they'll sit there for hours, and the glass keeps everyone honest.

How It Works

1. Three silicone suction cups grip the glass — clean glass and a firm press is all it takes, no drilling and no bracket.
2. The tray holds the seed at the base, with clear walls so nothing blows out and you can see the level from inside.
3. The pitched roof sheds rain away from the tray and gives a small bird a perch out of the weather.
4. Everything is clear acrylic, which is what lets you watch from inside the house without the feeder itself blocking the view.

How to Set It Up

1. Clean the glass properly first — inside and out where the cups go. Dust and salt film is the only reason a suction cup lets go.
2. Wet the cups slightly before you press them on. A touch of water makes the seal and makes it hold for months rather than days.
3. Press each cup firmly and work the air out from the middle. Then hang your weight on it briefly before you trust it with seed.
4. Start with a small handful of seed, not a full tray. An empty feeder nobody has found yet just goes mouldy.
5. Then wait, and don't move it. It can take a week or two before the first bird commits, and moving it resets the clock.
Tip: put it on a window you walk past without thinking — the kitchen sink, the kettle, the desk. People mount these on the nicest window in the house and then never stand at it. The feeder is only as good as the number of times a day you happen to be in front of it.

NB: suction cups hold on clean, dry glass, so the five minutes spent cleaning the window is the whole installation. A sheltered window under the eaves keeps the seed drier and the cups gripping longer than one in full western sun. Small seed-eating birds are what this attracts — silvereyes, wrens, finches and the like — so a fine mixed seed suits it better than large sunflower or parrot mix.

Care and Maintenance

• Tip the old seed out weekly and wipe the tray dry. Damp seed in a closed tray is the thing to stay ahead of.
• Rinse with hot water, no detergent, and let it dry before refilling.
• Re-wet the suction cups every few months, or whenever it starts to creep down the glass.
• Clean the acrylic with a soft cloth only. Paper towel and scourers scratch it and the view is the product.

Specifications

What's Included

• 1 × Window bird feeder with three suction cups