When the ground is covered with snow and ice, it’s hard to resist just
tossing seed out the door. But it’s healthier for the birds to get
their handouts at a feeding station, rather than off the ground.
Regardless of the season, food that sits on the ground for even a
short time is exposed to contamination by dampness, mold, bacteria,
animal droppings, lawn fertilizers and pesticides.
You can start simply with a piece of scrap wood elevated a few inches
above the ground. Add a few holes for drainage and you’ve built a
platform feeder. It won’t be long before the birds find it.
There are several factors to consider after you’ve decided to feed
birds in your backyard.
_Placement_
Where do you want to watch your birds? From a kitchen window ... a
sliding glass door opening onto a deck ... a second-story window?
[Illustration: Window feeder]
Pick a location that is easy to get to. When the weather is bad and
birds are most vulnerable, you may be reluctant to fill a feeder that
is not in a convenient spot near a door or an accessible window. Also,
pick a site where discarded seed shells and bird droppings won’t be a
cleanup problem.
Put your feeder where the squirrels can’t reach. Squirrels become a
problem when they take over a bird feeder, scaring the birds away and
tossing seed all over. Squirrels have been known to chew right through
plastic and wooden feeders.
If you’ve seen squirrels in your neighborhood, it is safe to assume
they will visit your feeder. Think long and hard before you hang
anything from a tree limb. Squirrels are incredibly agile, and any
feeder hanging from a tree is likely to become a squirrel feeder.
[Illustration: _Photo: Kevin Tennyson, USDOI_]
In the long run, a squirrel-proof feeder or any feeder on a pole with
a baffle is the least aggravating solution. The most effective
squirrel-proof feeder is the pole-mounted metal “house” type.
If you must hang a feeder, select a tube protected with metal mesh.
Most plastic “squirrel-proof” feeders, despite manufacturers’ claims,
may eventually succumb to the squirrels. Any wood or plastic feeder
can be effective when mounted on a pole with a plastic or metal
baffle, if the pole is at least 10 feet or more from a tree limb or
trunk (squirrels can jump great distances).
_Durability_
Bird feeders are made from a variety of materials. You can buy
disposable plastic bag feeders; feeders made of cloth, nylon, vinyl
and metal netting; clear, lexan, colored and PVC plastic tubes;
ceramic and terra cotta; redwood, western cedar, birch, pine and
plywood; sheet metal and aluminized steel; glass tubes and bottles.
[Illustration: Terra Cotta feeder]
How long a feeder lasts depends on how well you maintain it, the
effects of weather, and whether squirrels can get to it. Water can get
into any feeder regardless of how carefully you protect it. Cloth,
vinyl, nylon and metal netting feeders are inexpensive, but they do
not protect your seed from spoiling in damp or wet weather. Improve
them by adding a plastic dome.
Most wood, plastic, ceramic and solid metal feeders keep seed dry, but
water can get into the feeding portals. Look for feeders with drainage
holes in the bottoms of both the feeder hopper and the seed tray.
Even bowl-type feeders and trays with drainage holes will clog with
seed and bird droppings that can mix with rainwater and be unhealthy
for any animal. Look for shallow plate-like seed trays to catch
dropped seeds while allowing spent seed shells to blow away.
When you feed birds, expect bird droppings and a leftover food mess.
While you do not have to wash the feeder daily, you should clean it at
least every few weeks. Diseases like salmonella can grow in moldy, wet
seed and bird droppings in your feeder tray and on the ground below.
Move your feeder a few feet each season to give the ground underneath
time to assimilate the seed debris and bird droppings.
The maintenance required to keep your feeder clean varies according to
the type of feeder. A thistle feeder for goldfinches should be cleaned
about once a month depending on how often it rains. Feeding
hummingbirds requires cleaning at the very least weekly, but
preferably two or three times a week. Sunflower and suet feeders need
to be cleaned only once a month.
Plastic, ceramic and glass feeders are easy to clean. Wash them in a
bucket of hot, soapy water fortified with a capful or two of chlorine
bleach. Use the same regimen with wood feeders, but substitute another
disinfectant for the bleach so your wood won’t fade.
_Food Capacity_
The ideal feeder capacity varies with your situation, and the types of
birds you want to attract. If you feed hummingbirds, big feeders are
not always better. One hummingbird will drink about twice its body
weight (less than an ounce) a day. Early in the season, hummers are
territorial and won’t share a feeder. A sixteen-ounce feeder can be
wasteful, or even lethal, because artificial nectar (sugar water) can
ferment in the hot summer sun. A two-ounce feeder is more than enough
for one hummer. Increase the size of your feeder depending on your
location and how many hummers you see in your yard.
[Illustration: Winter feeding]
If you opt for a large-volume seed feeder, protect it from the weather
and keep it clean. If after months of use, the birds suddenly abandon
your feeder full of seed, it’s time for a cleaning.