Backyard bird feeding is a convenient way to enjoy wildlife. According to a recent Census Report, over 63 million Americans, young and old, feed, watch, or photograph wildlife.

1. B ackyard bird feeding is a
convenient way to enjoy
wildlife. According to a recent
Bird Feeding 101 Census Report, over 63 million
Americans, young and old, feed,
watch, or photograph wildlife.
Everything You Ever Wanted And, they spend $29 billion
annually doing it.
To Know About Feeding Birds
What has made watching
birds the fastest growing hobby
For more nature habitat information in the country, second only to
gardening. Whatever it is,
Visit these helpful websites: watching birds, like watching fish
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How do our feeding “hand-
outs" affect the birds. Little
research has been done on that
question. But we do know that
some birds – cardinals,
mockingbirds, and tufted
titmice – have extended their
winter range northward, perhaps
because of an increased
availability of food at feeding
stations.
There is no indication, however,
that backyard bird feeding has
had a negative affect on wild
bird populations as a whole.
Backyard bird feeding can,
however, have an adverse effect
on an individual bird. There may
be a higher incidence of disease
and birds injured by flying into
windows. But, you can take
Close your eyes for a moment and picture this – precautions to minimize these
a white carpet of new, soft, sparkling snow... a red problems.
cedar, hopper bird feeder loaded with black oil sunflower
seeds and mounted on a wood post with a white “top
hat"... and moving, brightly colored objects zooming in How to Start
and out of your “picture." No matter where you live, you
can put food outside your door,
This work of art is bird feeding at its finest! and some creature, feathered or
furred, will show its appreciation
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2. and make an appearance. s How durable is it. the feeding portals. Look for
That’s all it takes. Once you feeders with drainage holes in
get started, it’s hard to stop. s Will it keep the seeds dry. the bottoms of both the feeder
hopper and the seed tray.
Before you know it, you’re s How easy is it to clean.
learning bird names. After Even bowl-type feeders and
awhile, you’ll start to s How much seed will it hold. trays with drainage holes will
recognize individuals and the clog with seed and bird
messages in their behavior s How many birds will it feed droppings. Add rainwater and
and song. at one time. you have an unhealthy broth.
Look for shallow plate-like seed
When you get to the point s Which species will use it. trays. The purpose of a tray is
where you want to attract and to catch dropped seeds while
“keep" a particular species, allowing spent seed shells to
what you do will be determined Durability blow away.
by where you live and the time There seems to be no end to
of year. the material used in making bird
feeders. You can buy Cleaning
In the long run, a squirrel- “disposable" plastic bag Any zookeeper and cage bird
proof feeder or any feeder on a feeders; feeders made of cloth, owner will tell you, when you feed
pole with a baffle is the least nylon, vinyl, and metal netting; birds in a confined area, you
aggravating solution. The clear, lexan, colored and PVC have to expect bird droppings,
most effective squirrel-proof plastic tubes; ceramic and feathers, an occasional insect
feeder is the pole-mounted terra cotta; redwood, western or two, and left-over food mess.
metal “hopper" type. cedar, birch, pine, and plywood;
sheet metal and aluminized While you don’t have to wash
If you must hang a feeder, steel; glass tubes and bottles. the feeder daily, you should
select a tube protected with clean it regularly.
metal mesh. Most plastic How long a feeder lasts
“squirrel-proof" feeders, depends on how much effort you Diseases like salmonella can
despite manufacturers’ put into maintaining it, the grow in moldy, wet seed and bird
claims, may eventually effects of weather, and whether droppings in your feeder tray
succumb to rodent teeth. squirrels can get to it. and on the ground below. It’s a
good idea to move your feeders
If you have the “right" (just a foot or so) each season
situation in your yard, a pole Dry Seeds to give the ground underneath
with a baffle should suffice. Water can get into any feeder time to assimilate the seed
Any wood or plastic feeder can – regardless of how careful you debris and bird droppings.
be effective when mounted on are to protect it. Seed will spoil
a pole with a plastic or metal when it gets damp or wet. Cloth, Keeping your feeders clean
baffle, if the pole is at least 10 vinyl, nylon, and metal netting should not become a major
feet or more from a tree limb feeders are inexpensive, but undertaking. The degree of
or trunk. they do not protect your seed. maintenance required is directly
You can improve them by adding related to the types of birds
Once you’ve determined a plastic dome. you want to attract.
where you’re going to put your
feeder, you’re ready to go Most wood, plastic, ceramic, A thistle feeder for
shopping. In addition to good and solid metal feeders will keep goldfinches should be cleaned
looks, think about... seed dry, but water can get into about once a month depending
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3. on how often it rains. Feeding If you opt for a large volume If you want only finches and
hummingbirds requires cleaning seed feeder, be sure to protect an occasional dove and white-
at the very least, weekly, it from the weather and keep it throated sparrow, try niger
preferably more often – two or clean. If, after months of use, thistle.
three times a week. Sunflower the birds suddenly abandon
and suet feeders may need to be your feeder full of seed, it’s time If you want only jays,
cleaned only once a month. for a cleaning. titmice, and white-throated
sparrows, try peanuts.
Feeders made of plastic,
ceramic, and glass are easy to How Many Birds. Another way to discourage
clean. Wash them in a bucket of If too many birds at your unwanted birds is to use
hot, soapy water fortified with a feeder becomes a problem, you specialty feeders that, for
capful or two of chlorine bleach, can control their numbers by the most part, allow only
then give them a run through putting out smaller amounts of “select" birds to feed.
your dishwasher. seed, by using specialty seeds,
or by using restrictive feeders. The most non-selective
Use the same regimen with feeders are the tray,
wood feeders, but substitute If you fill your feeder only when platform, or hopper feeders.
another disinfectant for the it’s empty, the birds will look for
bleach so your wood won’t fade. food elsewhere. They’ll return as You can encourage small
long as you continue to fill it. birds with feeders that
restrict access. Wood
Food Capacity You can virtually eliminate feeders with vertical bars and
The ideal feeder capacity varies visits by birds you’d rather not feeders covered with wire
with your situation, and the see by offering seeds they won’t mesh frustrate the larger
types of birds you want to eat. Be selective in your choice birds.
attract. of seeds.
Tube feeders without trays
If you feed hummingbirds, big If you use more than one also restrict access to small
feeders are not always better. type of seed, put them in birds. Remove the perches,
One hummingbird will drink about separate feeders. This will and you’ve further selected
twice its body weight (less than reduce wasted seeds, as birds only those birds capable of
an ounce) each day. will toss unwanted seeds out of clinging – finches, chickadees,
a feeder to get to their titmice, and woodpeckers.
Early in the season, hummers favorites.
are territorial and won’t share a Add vertical perches to
feeder. A 16-ounce feeder can be Birds that visit your feeder tube thistle feeders, and
wasteful, or indeed lethal, have very specific preferences. you’ll limit accessibility
because artificial nectar (sugar Most prefer sunflower. Some primarily to the goldfinches.
water) can ferment in the hot prefer millet. A few prefer
summer sun. peanuts. None seem to prefer If starlings are a problem
the other grains used in the at your suet feeder, you can
If you see only one hummer in mixes: corn, milo, red millet, discourage them by using a
your yard, a two-ounce feeder is oats, wheat, and canary seed. suet feeder with access only
more than enough. On the other at the bottom. Starlings are
hand, if you live in the Southwest, If you want to feed only reluctant to perch upside
and have 34 hummers in your cardinals, doves, and white- down. Chickadees and
yard, a 16-ounce feeder may not throated sparrows, switch from woodpeckers don’t find that
be big enough. black oil sunflower to safflower. a problem.
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4. Species Variety Seeds that wind up on the
The species you attract is ground are likely to be
determined primarily by the contaminated by dampness and
seeds you offer. bird droppings. If the birds don’t
eat them, rodents will.
Black oil sunflower is the
hands-down favorite of all the The most effective way to
birds that visit tube and house attract the largest variety of
type feeders. White proso millet birds to your yard is to put out
is favored by birds who visit separate feeders for each food:
platform feeders (doves and
sparrows). Ducks, geese, and s Starling-resistant suet
quail will eat corn. feeder
Many of the cereal grains s Hopper feeder for sunflower
(corn, milo, oats, canary, wheat,
rape, flax, and buckwheat) in s Bluebird feeder
mixed bird seeds are NOT
favorites of birds that visit s Wire mesh cage feeder for
tube feeders. peanuts
Watch a feeder filled with a s Nectar feeder
seed mix and you’ll see the birds
methodically drop or kick out s Tube feeder for thistle
most of the seeds to get to
their favorite – sunflower. Birds s Stationary or tray fruit
will also kick out artificial feeder
“berry" pellets, processed seed
flavored and colored to look like s Hopper or platform feeder
“real" fruit. for millet
This article was written by
Thomas D. Patrick, President and
If I Stop Feeding, What Will Happen. Founder of the WindStar Wildlife
Some people don’t feed birds because they are concerned that Institute, a national, non-profit
the birds will become dependent on the feeders for survival and if conservation organization whose
mission is to help individuals and
they stop, the birds will starve to death. families establish or improve the
wildlife habitat on their properties.
Normally, this is not true. Feeders serve as supplements to
For more information or for the
natural food sources, not replacements. Birds that visit feeders
name of a Master Wildlife Habitat
develop a routine or pattern of visiting feeders. If your feeder is Naturalist in your area, please
empty on a particular day, they simply go on to the next. If your contact:
feeder remains empty for a long period of time, they may quit
WindStar Wildlife Institute
coming at all.
The exception to this is when there are snow storms, ice storms, E-mail: wildalife@windstar.org
http://www.windstar.org
and periods of severe, prolonged cold – birds then need food badly.
Your feeder can make a difference in the birds survival.
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