FeederWatch: What to Feed Birds

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FeederWatch: What to Feed Birds

Bird seed

The variety of bird seeds and mixtures on the market is staggering. In most locations, however, the best all-around attractant is black-oil sunflower seed. This seed has a high meat-to-shell ratio; it is high in fat; and its small size and thin shell make it easy for small birds to handle and crack. (Striped sunflower seeds are larger and have thicker seed coats.)

Try starting with sunflower seeds, then experiment with other seeds or mixtures. A table showing the seed preferences of various bird groups can be seen at the bottom of this page. Remember that the table is a generalization, and that some bird species have different preferences in different parts of their ranges.

Read more about different types of seeds.

Suet

Suet is a good choice for attracting insect-eating birds such as nuthatches and woodpeckers. Most suet is beef kidney fat, which is inexpensive and available at many meat counters. Suet also can be purchased as processed cake that includes seeds, berries, and other ingredients. Be careful if you offer suet in hot weather; it may become rancid if it has not been specially processed.

Bushtits at suet feeder.
Photo by Lisa Schwab,
Mt. Vernon, Washington
Nectar

Nectar is sugar water that is used to attract hummingbirds and orioles. To make nectar, add one part sugar to four parts boiling water and stir. When the mixture is cool, it is ready for use.

You can store extra sugar water in your refrigerator for up to one week. Adding red food coloring to nectar is unnecessary and possibly harmful to birds. Red portals on the feeder, or even a red ribbon tied on top, will attract the birds just as well.
Hummingbird at nectar feeder.
Photo by Thomas Fedewa,
Estacada, Oregon

IMPORTANT: Change nectar every three to five days to prevent mold and deadly fermentation. NEVER use honey or artificial sweeteners. Honey readily grows mold that can be harmful to hummingbirds. Do not put any kind of oil around feeding portals to deter bees; you might contaminate the nectar. If bees or wasps become a problem, try moving the feeder.

Other foods

Be creative and see what you can attract with a variety of foods. Try popped popcorn (without salt or butter), hulled sunflower seeds, peanut hearts, soaked raisins, pieces of fruit (orioles like oranges), fruit seeds (melons, apples), grapes, or mealworms.

Grit

Birds “chew” their food in their muscular, stomach-like gizzards. To aid in the grinding, birds swallow small, hard materials such as sand, small pebbles, ground eggshells, and ground oyster shells. “Grit” will therefore attract many birds as a food supplement. You can purchase grit at most feed and pet stores. If you decide to provide eggshells, be sure to sterilize them first. You can boil them for 10 minutes or heat them in an oven (20 minutes at 250 degrees). Let the eggshells cool, then crush them into pieces about the size of sunflower seeds. Offer the eggshell in a dish or low platform feeder, separate from your seed feeders.

Water

Birds need water for drinking and bathing, so they are attracted to water just as they are to feeders. You can purchase a bird bath or simply use dishes or shallow pans. Birds seem to prefer baths that are at ground level, but raised baths will attract birds as well. Change the water every day to keep it fresh and clean.

If the bath is on the ground, arrange a few branches or stones in the water so that birds can stand on them and drink without getting wet (this is particularly important in winter).

Bathing Northern Cardinals.
Photo by Harold Jackson,
Memphis, Tennessee

Such “islands” also will allow waterlogged bugs, especially bees, a surface to climb onto and dry out so they can fly away.

One of the best ways to make your birdbath more attractive is to provide dripping water. You can buy a dripper or sprayer, or you can recycle an old bucket or plastic container by punching a tiny hole in the bottom, filling it with water, and hanging it above the birdbath so the water drips out.

In freezing climates, a birdbath heater will keep ice from forming. Never add anti-freeze; it is poisonous to all animals including birds.

Bird-feeding tips

Birds may be wary of new foods. If you add something new to your bird-feeding station, offer it in a familiar place.
If you buy a lot of seed, store it in a cool, dry place, in a rodent-proof, metal can. Check the seed often for mold. Dispose of any seed that is questionable.
Do not feed birds any foods that contain chocolate. An ingredient of chocolate—theobromine—is toxic to birds just as it is to dogs and cats.
Do not use seed that has been stored for an extended period of time; it may grow mold, which can contain harmful toxins.
BirdNotes

Download free Lab of Ornithology BirdNotes about bird feeding.

Seed Preferences of Common Feeder Birds ...




What is Project FeederWatch?

Project FeederWatch is a winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. FeederWatchers periodically count the birds they see at their feeders from November through early April and send their counts to Project FeederWatch. FeederWatch data help scientists track broadscale movements of winter bird populations and long-term trends in bird distribution and abundance.

Project FeederWatch is operated by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada.

Project FeederWatch
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
P.O. Box 11
Ithaca, NY 14851-0011

877-741-3077

Project FeederWatch
Bird Studies Canada
P.O. Box 160, 115 Front Street
Port Rowan, ON N0E 1M0
1-888-448-2473
Fax: (519) 586-3532
E-mail: pfw@bsc-eoc.org