For the Birds!
by Esther Kiviat

Crisp fall days are a good time to make plans for our backyard friends—the birds that have filled our summer days with songs and color. One thing we know—birds love to eat—they need constant sustenance to support their ceaseless activity. Although seeds and berries, insects and worms, are plentiful now, in a few months when ice and snow cover the northeast, birds may need the sustenance of more readily available food provided by humans. If you haven't already done so, September and October are good times to put out some backyard feeders. You can make them or buy them; then fill them with seeds and other tidbits and settle down to watching throughout the long winter—or longer.

Planning feeding stations is like opening a restaurant: to attract a varied clientele you need a good location, a varied menu, good service, and properly designed facilities. It's not difficult. Here are some suggestions to get started.

Location: Look around your yard for a spot where trees or shrubs can provide shelter for the birds or safety from predators, and set up a feeder nearby. It will attract more species than a feeder in the middle of an open lawn. Several small feeders of different sizes and at different locations and heights will attract more birds than a single large feeder, and give the tiny chickadees a feeding spot when greedy bluejays take over the largest one. Also, each species has its own preferred eating location; juncos, sparrows, and mourning doves on the ground, cardinals on a flat platform early in the morning and late in the evening, and nuthatches, woodpeckers, catbirds, and evening grosbeaks at some height.

Menu: Birds like a wide range of foods, but again, each species has its own preferences. Your menu can include stale bread crumbs or pieces of doughnuts, bits of fruit, nuts or leftover popcorn, and/or mixed birdseed, sunflowers seeds, or special bird cakes. I have found that black oil sunflower seeds, instead of striped sunflower seeds or wild birdseed mix, is the ideal all-purpose food that attracts the widest range of birds with the least amount of waste. One staple food that should be on every bird restaurant menu is suet.

Good Service: After a cold night, birds seek food early in the morning. You may find it easier, as I do, to stock your feeders the night before, rather than braving the cold at the crack of dawn. Once you have started a feeding program, it is wise to continue throughout the winter, as birds may come to depend on it. If you plan to be away for a short time, ask a neighbor to replenish the feeders.

Designing the Facilities: As long as the menu is good, birds aren't too picky about the looks of the feeders. You can make simple ones out of shellacked cardboard or coffee cans, or you can buy elegant feeders. Constructing feeders from easily procured materials is a great family project and a wonderful way to get children interested in birds and other aspects of the natural world. The simplest feeder is a shelf to attach to a windowsill with metal L-braces, although outwitting the squirrels is an ongoing and sometimes frustrating battle. If you can't stop them, my advice is to sit back and enjoy their antics.

Once you have set up and stocked one or more simple feeders in your backyard, allow a few days or longer for the birds to discover them. You will be amazed at the great variety of visitors, increasing over time. Be prepared for the possibility of bird watching becoming a lifetime hobby!