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Cardinals,Goldfinches, and Chickadees swarming your Bird Feeder. This is the goal of your backyard bird feeding station.But where do you start? With so many available, which bird feeder is the best one for you? Other questions abound:
A review the many categories of feeders available will answer these and many other questions. Tube Feeders
A common bird feeder is the Sunflower Tube Feeder. This is a long cylindrical style feeder with large ports (ports are the access points from which a bird withdraws seed). Large port tube feeders hold large bird seed such as black oil sunflower seed or blends with large seed in them. Click the link below to learn:
Thistle Feeder (Small Hole Tube Feeder)
A small hole tube feeder holds thistle seed and thus, is referred to as a thistle feeder. Thistle is a small black seed that only small birds eat (with the exception of dove). Offer this seed to attract the
American Goldfinch,
pine siskin, redpoll, house finch, purple finch and sparrows.Click the link below to learn:
Hopper FeedersAnother common bird feeder is the hopper feeder This V-shaped design of the feeder walls drives seed onto a platform. Typically, this feeder is shaped like a barn and sports a wooden roof, two wooden and two plastic sides (these two sides make up the V-shape). Fill the feeder by lifting the lid.
The great advantage of this feeder over a tube bird-feeder is the increased space that a bird has to perch. Larger birds (including cardinals) prefer this feeder over a large port tube feeder.
Tray (Platform Feeder)
What do sparrows, blue jays, towhees, and cardinals have in common? They prefer to forage for food already on the ground. It is feasible, then, to feed these birds by tossing a handful of seed into the grass. However, such a delivery method makes the seed susceptible to mold growth. When this happens, birds will reject the offering.For this reason, a Tray Feeder (Platform Feeder) can become an integral component of a bird feeding station.
A tray bird-feeder has four very short walls (one to three inches high), four short legs (6 inches maximum) and a wire mesh bottom. The mesh bottom is perforated, thus allowing rain to drain, thus preserving the seed. By placing seed in this feeder, the birds will become accustomed to “this” location as “the place” to find sustenance, thus the seed will be eaten long before growing mold.
Suet Feeder
Though birds will eat suet year round, nothing is more attractive to insect-eating birds in the winter. There are a variety of
suet feeders
available for feeding suet.
The most common suet feeder is the small cage. It so happens that this basic suet feeder is quite vulnerable to unwanted birds like starlings and grackles as well squirrels. If these pests become a problem you may need to bring control to your suet by switching to an upside down suet feeder.
We should mention too that there are many, many "novelty" type suet feeders that provide you with an alternative look. The birds, however, don't care what the feeder looks like! They're only interested in the suet.
Peanut Feeders
Birds are crazy about nuts! You can place peanuts-in-the-shell in a whole peanut bird feeder, which will bring the aggressive blue jay under control. Once they discover the peanuts in the shell, they’ll ignore everything else!Also, peanut pieces are chopped peanuts and attract all sorts of birds including nuthatches, chickadees, and woodpeckers. There are two factors to keep in mind:
To feed shelled peanuts, you will likely use a tube style
peanut feeder.
Fruit Feeders
Fruit is a great supplement to any feeder station. Offer up an orange or apple half with a fruit bird-feeder (usually impaled on a peg). Grapes are also popular with a variety of birds. Which birds eat fruit fruit?
Click here to learn about fruit eating birds and associated
fruit feeders.
Hummingbird Feeders
If this is the first time you have considered attracting
hummingbirds,
you may find yourself overwhelmed by the variety of
hummingbird feeders
available. Make no mistake, they do not all perform the same and you must educate yourself prior to deciding what’s best for you.Once you decide, however, the hummingbird is quite a joy to have around. They become accustomed to you as the one who "puts the nectar in the flower" and so will buzz you head and zip around you when you're outside, particularly if the feeder is empty.
Click the "hummingbirds" link above for an in-depth article about hummingbirds.
The Mealworm Feeder
Mealworms are a beetle larvae. Make them part of your feeding station by putting them in a
mealworm feeder.
Expect to see all kinds of birds including but not limited to:
Insect eating birds will devour mealworms regardless of the season. Some mealworm feeders are simple hopper-like feeders; others are a bit more sophisticated and include an overhead dome for protection from the weather and pests.
If the thought of placing worms makes in a bird feeder makes you cringe, don't worry! Put out dehydrated mealworms, instead. In this form, the belly has been removed and so they are no longer living. This is a great alternative to traditional live mealworm.
Jelly FeedersJelly is not just for sandwiches. More and more backyard bird watchers recognize grape jelly as a favorite of orioles, tanagers and catbirds. The jelly bird feeder consists of a small dish, usually inside a hopper-like feeder. This can be a great supplement to a typical feeder station.Squirrel Proof Bird FeederIt seems almost instinctive for bird watchers to war with squirrels. If you choose to go this route, you will likely begin investing in a squirrel proof bird feeder or two.Understand that this will set you back $100 smacks or more. Before investing, I would first try a couple of other things. The Safflower SolutionThis is a white seed that ornithologists tell us is "bitter' tasting. I'm unsure how they know this, but I can attest to its effectiveness--nine times out of ten, squirrels won’t eat safflower. Neither do grackles or starlings. Nearly everything else does.Whether a squirrel chooses to eat may be linked to whether or not other more favorable foods are available in their territory. So go ahead and give safflower a try! The BaffleBaffles come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Most are disc-shaped. Some are torpedo-shaped. Both styles attach to a shepherd’s hook and prevent bottom up access. To be effective, you must adhere to the following:Your shepherd's hook must be isolated by 8 – 10 feet. The area around the feeder must be clear of anything from which a squirrel can jump, thereby bypassing the baffle. The baffle must be affixed to the hook at least 3 feet above the ground. This prevents a vertical leap that bypasses the baffle. If your shepherd’s hook is not long enough to place the baffle three feet above the ground, you need a longer shepherd’s hook. When these conditions are met, baffling can be a highly effective squirrel control method.
If you are dissatisfied with these options, there is good news. Manufacturers like Droll Yankee, Vari-crafts, and Heritage Farms have great squirrel proof products. Whatever you choose to do, KEEP FEEDING THE BIRDS!!
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