Wild Bird Care

There are many articles about feeding birds and caring for them in winter months. I share this one as a general intro and because I often write for Associated Content also. I edited and placed emphasis on different sections of this article than the author did, with all due respects to his work.

Caring for Wild Birds  November 17, 2008 by David DeWitt published at Associated Content

Tips for Feeding and Caring for Backyard Birds

Bird watching has been a great pastime for my family during the year. My daughter even did a 4-H project on the wild birds of Ohio. There are days when I thing that I have birds on the brain. Caring for wild birds is more extensive a project than most people might think. There is a method to the madness and reasons that a variety of feeds, feeders, and shelters.
What are some of the way that we can take care of the wild bird that make our backyards their home?
Wild birds need a variety of things to help give them adequate care. Here is a short list of some of the things that birds need.

Feed Me Please
Proving a variety of different foods not only improves the overall health of your backyard birds, it also helps to attract higher numbers of birds and greater diversity of bird species. You would never think to try feeding suet to a hummingbird or hummingbird nectar to a robin. The variety of foods you provide for your wild birds depends on your area and what kinds of birds you want to attract. We put out different kinds of bird seed and often mixed in additional sunflower seeds. There were several different kinds of suet cakes we fed our birds. We had thistle for finches and cracked corn. We also added a hummingbird feeder. Caring for your wild birds means that you care form them year round. Many times backyard birds will become dependent on your feeders as a primary source of food. You will need to keep the feeders filled and cleaned out to keep the birds coming to your backyard habitat.

Different Strokes for Different Folks

Feeders are important for your backyard birds. Different feeders provide different needs and serve different functions. The more feeders and types of feeders, you have the wider variety of birds you will attract to your backyard. This past year our family put out one large bird feeder with regular bird seed, one small bird feeder, a bird feeder on the ground, another handmade feeder with regular seed, one hummingbird feeder, two suet feeders and one finch feeder. All of these different feeders helped to attract a large variety of birds. My daughter counted over forty different types of birds in our backyard this past year.

A Place to Wrent

Housing is another crucial aspect of caring for your backyard birds. Shelter is one of the basic needs for human life. Birds in your backyard need shelter as well. Whether you are creating homes for Wrens or Blue Jays, you need to know what is needed by the specific birds on your backyard. Shelters can be simple or they can be elaborate. What matters is that more birds will be attracted to your backyard if you provide shelter.

Water the Forgotten Resource

There are many who supply their backyard birds with ample food, significant shelter with bird houses and different kinds of feeders but forget to provide a source of water. Water is one of the basics of life, every creature needs it to survive. Water is not everywhere and it is not always plentiful in the wild. This is especially true during long dry spells of the summer months. One thing that many people forget to think about is the need for water.

Water serves two vital purposes for birds, cleansing and drinking. We have all seen birds enjoying time in a backyard birdbath or a large puddle following a rainstorm. Water is vital to the cleansing process for backyard birds. Birds will come to your backyard at times just because you provide them with water. Birds also need water for drinking. No animal can survive without water. (Remember Water may freeze in winter and be inaccessible to birds.- my notes)

These are some simple steps that you can take to help transform your backyard into a paradise for wild birds. The more feeds, feeders and shelters that you have, the more birds that you will attract to your backyard.

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