I am still Having squirrels keeping a lot of birds away... I tried coating the top of the fence with cayenne pepper in a vegetable base... but that has not stopped them(they seem to be visiting the feeder for about 30 minutes in the 7-8 am range...) I have let the seeds run very low purposefully and am now going to use the spicy seeds. since birds lack the receptors to taste spiciness... Yes, birds have taste receptors and can taste their food, though they have far fewer taste buds than humans—typically 50 to 500 compared to a human's 9,000. Most taste buds are located on the back of the tongue, the palate, and the floor of the mouth, aiding in the detection of sugar, salt, and bitter compounds.
