Common Food Spread Mixed With Birdfeed Helps Attract Insect-Eating Birds to Your Garden- Birding Experts Reveal
Feeding birds off our backyards is the least we can do given human settlements have uprooted the habitats of several birds across the globe. However, it’s not as simple as keeping food on a feeder and the feathered visitors hop into your house. Steve Kress, a birding expert and Vice President of Bird Conservation revealed ingenious tips to effectively feed backyard birds with nutrition and even attract a variety of them into your garden. To particularly attract insect-eating birds, Kress advised gardeners to follow some common tricks that diversify the bird feed.
Bird feed with suet attracts insect-eating birds to the garden or backyard. According to Merriam-Webster, suet is a hard, waxy fat yielded from the loins and kidneys of animals like beef and lamb. Woodpeckers, wrens, chickadees, nuthatches, and titmice feed on suet when placed in special feeders or net onion bags placed well off the ground, about five feet above at least, per the report by Audubon. It is advised that the suet be kept out of reach from dogs as it can pose a hazard for the birds. Additionally, suet during summer or hot weather can turn rancid due to chemical changes by the heat. Birds exposed to dripping fat can damage the natural waterproofing of bird feathers further making them susceptible to cold and health risks.
As an alternative to suet, the birding expert suggests that peanut butter and corn meal can provide similar nutrition during the summer. To make this all-season mixture, take one part of peanut butter and mix it with five parts of cornmeal. Then stuff it into holes in a hanging log or crevices of a pinecone for easy access to the desired birds like woodpeckers and sometimes even warblers. These options are limited to bird seed-eating birds and rule out fruit specialists such as robins, waxwings, bluebirds, and mockingbirds. They do not eat bird seeds and can be attracted through fruits and berries placed on the bird feeders.
Raisins and currants soaked in water overnight can act as nutritious feed for birds when placed on a table feeder. The report suggests bird feed blends with dried fruit mixture can also be purchased. This type of feed attracts fruit-eating birds and to further invite orioles and tanagers, half-oranges skewered onto a spike alongside other feeders can be substituted. Nectar feeders shall also be effective in attracting these birds. While feeding birds is the primary caregiving aspect, it is also important to maintain hygiene and safe environments for these birds to be disease-free.
The different reported diseases that birdwatchers generally come across among garden birds are caused by Salmonella and E.coli, as per a report by the British Trust for Ornithology. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some birds like siskins, house sparrows, collared doves, and greenfinches are more commonly affected by diseases. It is speculated that the tendency to feed in flocks and their gregarious nature makes them more susceptible than other birds. Hence, it is crucial for these garden birds to feed in a protected environment free from diseases or prevent contact with disease-carrying birds that can affect entire flocks of birds. Bird feeders must, therefore, be cleaned at least twice a year during spring and fall seasons.