Squirrels Begone!

It is that time of the year again when the bird feeders are strategically placed outside for the summer. I use the word strategically because every year it is a fight to deny the squirrels the food designed for the birds. One would not generally describe squirrels as smart, but they are resourceful when it comes to finding food. For a long time, I have failed at really changing their behavior. After all, they are true survivalists, and will be here long after I have departed. I have built, placed, hidden, and fought this battle for years and always lose. I did manage to hang a suet feed on a very thin wire and they have not defeated that yet, But they probably will!
But this year I found the above pictured "Squirrel Buster". It is the first design that I realty feel is up to the task of separating the birds from the squirrels. As long as there is less than 4 ounces of weight on the perches or the wire, the feed ports are open. But the weight of the squirrel will pull down on the wire and close the feed ports. Seems pretty clever, but time will tell. It is a bit early for the migratory birds to return to New Hampshire,but from photo two, you can see a goldfinch on the new feeder, and a black capped chickadee on the thistle feeder. This seems backward as goldfinches usually eat the thistle seed. The red cardinal lower in the photo is plastic. He is a light eater... Ken