Tips attracting Birds

 

1. Birds love and need water. A birdbath or other accessible water source will help you attract 1. all kinds of birds. A handy water source will also help prevent birds from eating your berries to get the moisture. 

 
2. For different types of birds, vary the types of food you offer. Black oil sunflower seeds will attract many seedeaters (finches, cardinals, nuthatches, chickadees, grosbeaks) but birds like indigo buntings often prefer millet. Goldfinches love thistle seed, while woodpeckers adore suet. (Get the kind that isn't prone to melting in the sun.) Peanut hearts and cracked corn are also good foods. Experiment till you attract the birds you want. 

3. Remember, some birds feed readily from hanging feeders, but others such as juncos, doves, towhees and cardinals prefer to feed on or near the ground. 

4. Big birds, like bluejays, can often scare away smaller birds. The trick is to provide different feeding stations -- some with easy access for bigger birds and some with small perches for smaller birds -- so they can all feed comfortably. 

5. If you are feeding in an open area, without surrounding trees or bushes, if you can provide a place for birds to land and rest you'll have more success. Cutting a small (6-8ft) sapling and sticking it in the ground a few feet away from your feeders will work nicely. It may also help save birds from neighborhood cats. 

6. Squirrels can scare birds. You can get many designs for "squirrel-proof" feeders, but it is often just as successful to give squirrels a feeder or feeding station of their own, placed away from your bird feeders. 

7. Store your birdseed in a cool, dry place -- birdseed that gets moldy can be dangerous to birds. 

8. Place your feeders where they will be easy to reach and refill in the winter. A location that's great for you in summer may not be convenient at all when there is snow on the ground. 

9. Provide nesting boxes and birdhouses to attract nesting pairs -- you'll get to see the parents bringing nesting materials, endlessly feeding the young birds, and then bringing them to the feeders when they're big enough! 

10. You can also provide nesting material for your birds -- they like short pieces of thread or string, woodchips, pet fur and pretty much anything else that is stringy or soft. Be sure to clip the pieces so they're about 2" in length -- your friendly feathered friends can't work with them when they're too long.