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We at Wild Birds Etc want to help you enjoy the beauty and fun
that wild birds bring into your life.
Wild Bird Food mixes should be specifically formulated to attract the greatest
number of colorful songbirds to your yard. We hope these tips help you
better understand and attract your feathered friends.
Offer Wild Bird Food year
round - in the fall migratory season, during winter when natural food
sources become more scarce, in the spring for mating and nesting time
and during the summer to help nourish new fledglings.
Offering different kinds of
Wild Bird Food will enable you to attract the greatest variety of native
songbirds. If a new food is not eaten right away, don't give up. It may
take time for certain birds to recognize a new food.
Place feeders near trees and shrubs because most birds prefer some
type of cover near a feeding area to protect them from cats and other
threats.
Domes or baffles above feeders not only keep out squirrels and
raccoons but also keep seed drier and protect feeding birds from rain
and snow.
To attract a larger variety of wild birds, place several types of
feeders at varying heights in different locations of your yard. Use
different styles of feeders for different types of seeds and mixtures.
Filling one feeder with a quality
blend and others with a single type of seed such as niger, sunflower or
safflower will help create an enjoyable wild bird feeding experience.
Most birds that feed at an elevated feeder prefer a blend that
contains larger seeds such as black oil sunflower, stripe sunflower,
sunflower hearts and peanut hearts.
Most ground-feeding birds will enjoy a blend made up of a variety of
millet and sunflower seeds which are scattered on the ground or on a
platform tray feeder.
Many birds seek out food most actively early in the morning and
again just before nightfall. This gives them the energy they need to
make it through spring nesting, breeding and chilly winter nights.
It is important to keep fresh, clean water no deeper than 2 inches
near the feeders. Birds need water for drinking and bathing.
Clean all feeders and birdbaths monthly with a vinegar and hot water
solution or two ounces of bleach with one gallon of water to prevent
bacterial growth.
When landscaping your yard consider planting berry bushes for
fruit-eating birds and perennial flowers for hummingbirds.
Offering Safflower Seed
should be a gradual process because your birds may not be familiar with
its different look and taste from other seeds. Start by mixing it with
one of our other seed blends and then slowly increase the amount of it
until the birds will heartily devour a serving of safflower seed by
itself.
Encourage woodpeckers to come visit you by filling the holes of a
bird feeder with peanut butter or suet. Place the
feeder near a tree trunk and soon you will have the friendly company of
native woodpeckers.
Scatter some
Cracked Corn on the ground to attract ground feeding birds and other
wildlife.
Birds do not have teeth so they need grit to help them grind up
their food and digest it. Scatter sand, ground oyster shells or
eggshells near your feeders to ensure longer and more frequent visits
from your favorite birds.
During the spring and early summer months, mix finely crushed
eggshells or oyster shells with
Wild Bird Food to provide females with much needed calcium vital to the
development of their eggs.
In addition to Wild Bird
Food, try providing other tempting treats to attract various wild birds
to your backyard. Hang suet cakes in wire suet baskets. Nail orange
halves to trees to attract orioles, woodpeckers and tanagers. Smear
trees or pine cones with peanut butter and watch the woodpeckers,
nuthatches and chickadees flock to it. Grape jelly is an excellent food
to offer in small trays during the summer for orioles and gray catbirds.
Store your Wild Bird Food
in a cool, dry place in a sealed container. Aluminum cans or plastic
pails with tight fitting lids work well.
Remember the three basics:
Wild Bird Food, water and shelter. Provide these necessities and you
will enjoy birds in your neighborhood for a long time.
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