Songbirds Appreciate Additional Food Source In Winter

By Nancy K. Crevier

It is shaping up to be a rough winter for wild birds in Connecticut, said Margaret Robbins, the owner of Wild Birds Unlimited in Brookfield, lecturer, and a leader of area bird walks. Deep snow and frigid temperatures would be bad enough, but the rain and freezing rain that has coated the New England landscape this winter is far more threatening to birds, she said. “They can truly freeze to death in the cold rain,” she said.

What our feathered friends can use right now is some extra food, said Ms Robbins. Because birds are warm blooded, it takes more energy in winter months to maintain their body temperature. Birds have a number of adaptations to thrive in cold weather. They fluff up feathers to create insulating air pockets; they tuck one foot, then the other, up under their tummies; they shiver to increase heat production; and songbirds have a storage pouch in the esophagus that allows them to slowly digest stored food overnight, helping them to stay warm. But a little support during severe weather is a benefit to yard birds, said Ms Robbins.

“When the weather is this cold, the extra food will definitely keep them alive.” According to a study from the University of Wisconsin, she added, birds have a 47 percent better chance of survival during cold weather in areas with feeders than they do in areas with no feeders.

What birds need during cold New England winters are high fat foods like suet, peanuts, black oil sunflower seeds, and safflower, suggested Ms Robbins. “It might take two or three weeks for birds to discover a new feeder, but when it is as cold as it has been, birds are looking. They will find the food,” she said.

Peanut butter is a favorite treat for birds, and inexpensive. Choose a nonorganic variety, though, as there have been incidences of birds falling ill from eating nonpasteurized peanut butter, said Ms Robbins. The higher sugar content of mainstream brands is also better for birds that are battling the elements.

Suet can usually be gotten at no cost from a butcher, said Ms Robbins, boiled down, and cut into chunks that can be suspended securely from a tree. Oranges, raisins, and other fruits are other excellent choices for feeding birds.

Uncooked rice, white bread, popcorn, or old or moldy bread can sicken birds, however. As a rule of thumb, said Ms Robbins, if you would not eat something, do not feed it to the birds. Avoid bagged bird foods that are high in millet, milo, barley, cracked corn, or wheat, as well, she recommended. “These are just cheap fillers and are not foods that our birds in this area eat. They will just throw them on the ground, and that is not only a waste of money and feed, but it can attract rodents, too,” she said. A good seed mix will be high in black oil sunflower seeds, and while a little more costly upfront, will not end up tossed on the ground.

Of course, it is not just birds who are seeking food during the cold months. “The squirrel population is just out of control this year,” exclaimed Ms Robbins. With food at a premium this winter, birders will want to take extra precautions to make sure that the bird food goes to the birds, and not the squirrels — unless that is part of the plan.

A thistle only bird feeder on the deck is not attractive to squirrels, but will make small birds, such as the goldfinch, extremely happy. Pole bird feeders should be situated in such a way that there is at least a 12-foot radius around the area with “Nothing there,” Ms Robbins said. “There should be no shrubs, no fences, no trees, nothing at all that a squirrel can climb onto and use as a launching pad to the feeder,” she said. A baffle can deter any squirrel determined to shinny up the pole. The pole itself should be at least six inches in diameter, to prevent a squirrel from getting its arms around it. The baffle, or slide, should be place about five feet high on the pole and be at least 15 inches long.

In addition to searching out a food source during the bitter weather, songbirds may also be looking for a roosting spot that is sheltered, said Ms Robbins. They may use the cover of thick pine boughs or shrubs, or even huddle together in a tree cavity for warmth, but a clean bird house left out over the winter months can also provide shelter in a storm.

Do not feel that feeding birds during a bout of bad weather is going to mean a lifelong commitment, said Ms Robbins. “Yes, they may come back searching for food if you stop, but they will go to other feeders, or they will turn to whatever they can get naturally,” she said. There is no harm in lending a temporary hand, though, if that is all one can do.

As the little old bird lady sings in Mary Poppins, “Come, buy my bags full of crumbs. Come feed the little birds, show them you care, and you’ll be glad if you do. Their young ones are hungry, their nests are so bare; all it takes is tuppence from you.”

What is critical, said Ms Robbins, is that birds have some additional source of food when a storm is coming or when temperatures fall below freezing.