Mar 2, 2003 By Rod Schoener 6 min read

There hasn’t been a lack of birds at my feeders this winter. So far, it has been an average year with no new or unusual visitors showing up.

However, one of my most frequent diners for years – house finches – did not show up right away, and when they did, their numbers were much fewer than years past.

On the other hand, I’ve always had cardinals at my feeders, but this year there seems to be an inordinate number showing up each day by my observation. Not that they are not welcome, I just never had so many feeding at one time before. A pair or two at a time was common, but five, six and seven pairs sparring for feeding turf are unusual.

I guess I shouldn’t be shocked. When traveling to a deer hunting spot in eastern Washington County one morning, I saw a feeder in one yard that was covered with cardinals just after daylight, and not another species of bird was around. If there was not at least 20 or 30 feeding or waiting their turn at the feeder, there wasn’t one.

Bird feeding is great, but to avoid diseases that infect songbirds, clean and disinfect your feeders at least once a season with a mild solution of chlorine bleach.

Most bird feeders began feeding in the fall or keep feed out all year, but if you received a feeder as a holiday gift, don’t hesitate to put it up.

The type of feed to put out depends on the species of birds in your area or what species you prefer to feed.

A variety of woodpeckers visit feeders in this area. They prefer suet, but they will also eat fruit, nuts, and sunflower seed and drink sugar water in warm weather.

Most bird feeders don’t like blue jays for they tend to bully smaller species at times, but if you want to attract them to your feeders try putting out peanuts. However, they will eat just about anything you put out.

I never see cedar waxwings at my feeder, but friends closer to the mountains tell me they get some on occasion. If you have waxwings in your neighborhood, temp them to stick around with some berries, raisins, sliced apples or canned peas.

Tufted titmice and chickadees like peanut kernels and sunflower seeds, while creepers and nuthatches prefer suet, but will also eat sunflower seeds and cracked corn.

During one of the really cold stretches of the winter, I purchased a jar of peanut butter, which did not suit my taste. I took a spatula, scooped it out of the jar and smeared it all over the bark of one maple tree near where a suet feeder hangs. It probably froze instantly. Upon arising the next morning I went to the window to see if it had been touched. The chickadees and nuthatches were working on it. The large light brown smear was so full of beak marks it looked as though it has been shot with a shotgun.

Cardinals and grosbeaks favor sunflower seeds and peanut kernels. While I haven’t seen a grosbeak for several years, I think it is time for this largest member of the finch family to again visit the area as it migrates from Canada. They seem to show up about now, and usually in years when there is good snow cover. Maybe this will be their year to return and stay around for a few days.

All members of the finch family prefer thistle and sunflower seed, but they will eat just about anything when hungry.

Suet is high-energy food and preferred by some species, but sparrows love it and can clean up a whole cake in a number of minutes. One tip I offered last year to avoid this is to take a piece of sheet metal such as aluminum and fold it over the suet feeder in a way that it covers everything but the bottom. Creepers, nuthatches, chickadees and woodpeckers can easily hang from the bottom of the feeder and eat, but sparrows do no like to hang upside down to eat and will leave it alone.

To attract more birds to your feeders, furnish the birds with water and provide them with grit such as sand or ground up eggshells. Birds lack teeth, and the grit, which is kept in the gizzard, is used to grind up seeds.

Birdseed mixes often contain more seeds that end up on the ground than in the birds. The best seeds for all-around bird feeding are black oil sunflower seeds and white millet.

People often say that once you start to feed the birds don’t quit.

There is no proof that birds died because one person did not fill his or her feeders. Sometimes we run out of seed, and other times we cannot reach our feeders due to weather or health reasons. Don’t get alarmed. Fill them as soon as you are able.

Birds feed at many places in the neighborhood, and they are quick to discover that your diner is open when they make their daily rounds.

To eliminate unwanted birds, put out only seeds you know they don’t eat.

If you’ve ever noticed a pile of seed on the ground, it is because birds will toss unwanted seed on the ground to get to the one they like. For that reason use separate feeders for different types of seed.

Use specialty feeders to attract the birds you want. Platform feeders invite every bird in the neighborhood, including pigeons and crows.

Don’t get rid of your platform feeder, just be aware of its pitfalls. Platform feeders are the best way to feed sparrows and doves. If you have mourning doves around your feeders, unless you have a platform, they will feed on the ground below the feeder, gleaning what falls as other birds feed such as thistle and corn.

Contrary to popular beliefs, feeding birds does not make them lazy, not even in the summer.

Actually, feeding them in the summer tends to keep them close at hand where they provide free insect control for your lawn and gardens.

According to the State of Missouri’s home page, birds benefit from your feeding efforts, but you are the biggest beneficiary because you are able to share with nature and enjoy the birds’ presence outside your home while adding diversity to your day while enriching your life.

Enough said!

Rod Schoener is the Herald-Standard outdoors writer.