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Just like bird feeders, there is a wide array of
potential bird foods to choose from, and your specific selection will be
dependent upon what you can expect in your part of the world and specific
terrain, as well as what, specifically, you wish to attract. If, for
example, you're keen on Bluebirds, you had better be comfortable with
handling mealworms, since - as pretty as they are - Bluebirds are
carnivores. Likewise, if Orioles are on your list, you've got to
furnish fruit, and even jam to attract them.
| Here in southeastern Pennsylvania, having a back yard
made up primarily of deciduous trees, so we have narrowed our
selection of food, as well, with Black Oil Sunflower seed being
absolutely the best, most versatile option. If you could only put out
one type of seed, that would be the choice. The thin shells, coupled
with their high nutrition level, make this popular with large and
small birds alike. |
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| Our second choice - and also popular with our
feathered friends - is shelled sunflower kernels, or "hearts". We
originally purchased the sunflower hearts as a way to avoid the need
to periodically clean up the shells below the feeders, but it has
turned out that it has been an attractant all by itself, so we offer
it in conjunction with the black oil seed, not as an alternative |
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| Third on the list is Nyjer seed, also commonly known
as "thistle" seed, and it is extremely popular with finches and other
small songbirds. |
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| Another staple is suet. Made from hard beef fat, suet
is usually mixed with a variety of seeds, insects, and/or fruit to
attract a wide array of birds. Year-long it is especially popular
with woodpeckers, but you'll find many birds gobbling up this highly
concentrated energy source in cooler months and at breeding time. |
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| For the hummingbirds - primarily summer friends here
in the northeast - a simple mixture of 1 part pure cane sugar to 4
parts tap water is ideal, as it most closely resembles the sugar
content of flower nectars in North America. Even though "hummers" are
attracted to the color red, do not dye the nectar, but use red feeders
instead. |
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