[Illustration: Illustrated capital F]
Food is the chief problem of winter birds. Cold alone is scarcely a
menace, while snow and sleet are chiefly harmful only when they cover up
the food. Given proper food, the only real requirement for a feeding
station from the birds' point of view is that it shall keep the food
available, as by providing a roof to shed snow and ice. Among the wide
variety of birds which frequently patronize food stations, various
members of the sparrow and finch family, which includes the grosbeaks,
juncos, and crossbills, vie with nuthatches, chickadees, woodpeckers,
and blue jays as the most dependable boarders.
For winter birds in the northern states, it is well to have the station
in place and stocked with food as early as the first of November. These
birds are then beginning to establish hunting grounds and routes, from
which they will not stray all winter. Earlier in the fall, as again in
spring, ground feeding is the better method. In this, scatter the food
(millet, hemp seed, and so on) in the back yard, along the fence line or
at the edge of shrubbery or thicket. Juncos, Towhees, Song, Fox, and
Tree Sparrows, and many others will benefit. Eagerly devoured by the
waxwings are dried currants and dried raisins. Nearly all birds are fond
of suet. Tie sizable chunks of suet to trees and to posts of food
stations; this appeals especially to woodpeckers, nuthatches, and
chickadees. Other standard foods are millet, hemp seed, sunflower seed,
cracked corn, and bread crumbs. In addition, chaff and oats may be
scattered on the ground for quail, grouse, pheasants, Horned Larks, Snow
Buntings, longspurs, and others in localities wild enough for these
birds. Such feeding is particularly desirable when the snow is covered
by an icy crust. The food may be scattered under brush shelters, made of
branchy tree limbs loosely and irregularly stacked and roughly thatched
with pine, fir, spruce, or other conifer to keep out excess snow.
The care of a food station consists mostly in keeping up a supply of the
proper foods and cleaning out the food trays as often as the condition
suggests. A small separate tray of coarse sand will provide the grit
many birds require. A hopper arrangement for feeding grains aids in
keeping the food supply clean and it helps prevent the scattering of
seeds.
[Illustration: Figure 5. Cross-section of a drinking and bathing
station for winter use. A flower pot of 8-inch diameter at the top
is recommended. If a much larger pot is to be used, a more powerful
light bulb may be required to keep the water free of ice in sub-zero
weather. If the water is found to be overheated, its temperature may
be reduced by placing wedges between the rims of the flower pot and
dish or between the rims of flower pot and box.]
_Our publications include many useful manuals concerning birds and other
wildlife. A descriptive list will be mailed upon request._
Cranbrook Institute of Science
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MICHIGAN
[Illustration: Wood Ducks]