Feed the birds in the garden, useful and environmentally friendly

Feed the birds in the garden

Details
When the frost arrives, birds which don’t migrate rush around the feeders! It’s because since the beginning of autumn food is lacking!

Why do we need to feed the birds in winter?
During only one cold- winter’ night, a tit can use up to half its body’s weight to maintain its body temperature. It therefore needs a lot of food that our gardens do not provide as they are too poor in natural foods. Incidentally, 8 tits on 10 die during winter mainly because of the lack of food. It is not so much the cold that penalizes the birds, but more the lack of food. The most crucial period for them is the end of winter, as even if the temperatures start going up again, the essential of the available food around has already been eaten and spring with its abundance of food is still a long way off. Therefore, feeding birds is protecting them!

To each bird, its feeder
Choose a suitable model for the specie you wish to feed.
Hanging silos attract climbing birds such as tits and nuthatches. Hang them on a clear branch which does not swing too much in the wind.
Feeding tables answer the needs of the birds eating preferably on the ground like the chaffinch and the greenfinch. Give them food on a shelf, preferably fixed onto a post. Blackbirds also appreciate this type of bird feeder but placed on the ground. In all cases, it is a good idea to surround the bird feeder with a large-meshed wire- netting (8 cm sides which will prevent the undesirable birds (magpies, crows, pigeons) to steal the food.

Other ways of feeding birds
For lack of « permanent » feeder, hang some feeding bags directly onto the branches. Choose a spot high enough, at least 1.50 m from the grounds so that neither rodents nor cats are able to make the most of this godsend. A fairly bare branch on a deciduous tree where birds can fly away rapidly in case of danger is preferable.
Finally, hang in the branches, at least 1 m from the ground, millet branches. The Eurasian tree Sparrow, Siskins and the Hawfinch will appreciate this, especially during harsh cold periods. The last two do not go near birds’ feeders and prefer their food given out this way.
For fruits-loving birds, hang a few, very sweet apples to a branch: they will be very much appreciated.

Keep the feeders clean
Remember to clean the different birds’ feeding supports during winter. Immerse them in soapy water then rinse them out with boiling water. Do not put them into place straight away but wait for the first snow to fall. Birds have the tendency of not coming to feed on feeders which have been left empty during the preceding weeks. This also limits the risk of contamination by birds which are carriers of diseases, especially the avian Poxvirus which puts the Passerine birds at risk. Another good habit consists in separating the feeding spots to limit the risks of fights, source of infections and weakening of birds.
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