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November is the best time to start cold weather bird feeding. Natural foods such as dead insects, insect eggs, and seeds are still available. Birds are scouting their territories and finding future food sources at this time. When the very cold weather arrives, the calorie requirements of birds increase; at the same time, food is harder to find. Birds will flock to your feeders, knowing there is a convenient meal.
Place your bird feeders nearby, where you can watch and photograph the different species. Shelter feeders from winds and snowdrifts. Mount on poles, or from wires or limbs, at the 5-6 foot level. Protective cover, such as trees, evergreens, or shrubs, should be within 5 feet. You can even “plant” a used Christmas tree nearby.
Feeders can be a simple shelf feeder - a platform mounted on a post; the disadvantage of this type of feeder is that the birdseed easily gets wet and moldy. There is also more waste and scattering of seed than with other types of feeders. The traditional wooden feeder has a small roof and glass or plastic hopper for dispensing seed. Look for good construction with untreated wood, held together with glue and screws. The hopper openings should be less than ½ inch, otherwise small birds can get their heads stuck.
Some feeders have a counter balance shutting off access to the birdseed, and preventing squirrels and heavier birds (pigeons, crows) from feedingA 1-2 foot log (2-3 inch diameter) can be drilled with large bore holes and packed with a suet or peanut butter mix. Add small wooden dowels for perches.
A teepee, a few feet high, can be constructed of tree limbs or lumber. Spread grain underneath to attract pheasants, quail, and turkeys.
FOOD: Suet provides high energy and will attract woodpeckers and nuthatches. Ask your deer hunting friends, or purchase beef suet at the grocery or prepare it by melting beef fat. Suet can be placed in a simple mesh (onion) bag or into a holder made of scrap wood and ¼ inch mesh hardware cloth. Melted suet can be mixed with birdseed, oatmeal, hulled sunflower kernels, peanut hearts, or cracked corn; this mixture can be molded into any type of container.
Bird seed mixes are not recommended. Wheat, milo, peanut hearts, hulled oats and rice in these mixes are less attractive to birds - these seeds will be eaten, but not as soon as preferred seeds. Thistle seeds, hulled sunflower seeds, and fine-cracked corn attract various species. Small black oil-type sunflower seeds are high in calories, attract the most species, and are the best bet for your dollar. The black seeds are preferred over the gray or black striped varieties of sunflower. The white (not red) proso millet seeds also attract a wide variety of birds. Buy in bulk - in the long run, it is cheaper. Always use clean seed. If you find yourself using a very large amount of birdseed, consider deer - friends found a talented deer in their yard, spilling seed onto the ground and eating it. (Bear and raccoons have been known to visit bird feeders…my advice…don’t argue, let them eat.)
Table scraps tend to attract starlings, pigeons, and house sparrows.
Keep your feeders and ground clean to prevent disease. Remove moldy seeds, clean bird droppings from baffles, chains, and trays. Use a bleach solution (1 part bleach to 9 parts water) to disinfect the feeders. Immerse the feeder completely in the solution for 2-3 minutes, at the beginning of the season and at least once or twice a month. Wash all-plastic feeders in a dishwasher.
Water in winter is scarce and using a simple water heater (available at garden stores) to keep the water unfrozen will attract as many birds as your feeders. The cost, spread out over many years of use, is minimal. Change the water every few days. Add some sand in the bath to provide footing.
Increase your bird watching enjoyment with a good bird identification guide and a set of field binoculars. You may enjoy your wintertime bird friends so much that you will want to plant your landscape to attract them all year…but that is another story (or article).
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