How to Feed a Bird

Posted on September 24th, 2009 by Carmelia

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Birds are beautiful and fascinating creatures, so it comes as no surprise that many people take up bird feeding as a hobby. You too can enjoy a daily commune with birds, given that you know you’re doing it correctly without exposing them to harm. Here’s how to feed birds and what to feed them.

Research

Do some research on the birds that live in your area, and what their food preferences are. It would also be helpful if you know where they live, and where they congregate, when they would be around during the seasons.

Seed Feeder

Once you’ve done your research, you can now move on to the next step: Deciding on which seed feeder to use. There are a variety of seed feeders to choose from and each type attracts certain types of birds. Here are the seed feeders you’ll need to choose from

Tray feeders: Attracts starlings, pigeons, doves, jays, juncos, grosbeaks and sparrows.
House feeders: Attracts jays, cardinals, finches, titmice, sparrows and chickadees.
Window feeders: Attracts finches, titmice and sparrows.
Tube feeders: Attracts smaller birds like sparrows and finches.
Nyjer feeders: Attracts American Goldfinches, Common Redpolls and Pine Siskins.
Suet feeders: Attracts woodpeckers, jays and starlings.

Keep in mind that when installing a seed feeder, it’s your responsibility to ensure that it remains clean and that the seeds are always fresh. Rotting or seeds infected with fungi can seriously hurt and damage a whole bird population. Ensure that your seed feeder is clean and dry, with your bird feed replaced every one to two days. (Want to create an environment friendly bird feeder? read how to make an Eco bird feeder )

Recommended Food

Birds will only come to you if you provide them with the food that they want and the food that they need. Here are some suggestions:

Bird Seed

There are a lot of types of bird seed being sold in the market, but you have to know which one is the best if you want to attract more birds. Birds love black-oil sunflower seeds and other types of sunflower seeds as well.

When buying bird seed, invest in the high-quality types. Cheaper types have a lot of inedible filler material that birds won’t eat.

Suet

Suet is simply beef kidney fat. If you’re trying to attract birds that primarily eat insects, suet is the way to go. You can get them in any meat shop or already transferred in a cake form with berries and seeds made especially for feeding birds.

Nectar

Nectar is the food of choice for most hummingbirds. You can make your own inexpensive version of it, too. The article How to Feed Hummingbirds details how you can make nectar.

In addition to these different types of bird food, you should also include grit, which is basically ground oyster shells, to help the birds digest their food better. Water is also an attractive addition to your bird feeder (Learn how to make bird food). Once you’ve set up your bird feeder, you need to give it some time before the birds discover it on their own. Good luck.