Feeding Birds Safely:
Important information about bird feeders!
There are many types of bird feeders on the market and some are designed to attract specific bird species. Please select bird feeders that foster a healthy and balanced native bird community. In addition, we recommend including native plant species in your landscaping. Native plants provide natural nesting habitat and food. For more information on landscaping for birds with native plants visit: http://www.prbo.org/cms/183.
If you feed birds, please do so responsibly. Responsible bird feeding means monitoring one's bird feeder for diseased birds, cleaning it regularly, and following the other recommendations listed below. You may also want to avoid feeding birds during their breeding season (April through August), as feeders can act as a major food source for avian predators and parasites, such as jays and brown-headed cowbirds. For additional information on bird feeding, see the Project Feederwatch webpage at www.feederwatch.org, a project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada. Note: PRBO does not have a policy for or against bird feeding.
Improving your backyard habitat with birds in mind will attract more and different birds over the long term, benefit bird populations for the future, and help keep common birds common. For more information, see the Creating Backyard Habitat section of PRBO’s website at www.prbo.org, and the National Wildlife Federation’s Backyard Wildlife Habitat website at http://www.nwf.org/nwf/habitats/.
Tips for Keeping Birds Safe at Feeders
- Put feeders in CAT FREE ZONES. If you have outdoor cats in your neighborhood, do not attract birds. Domestic cats are excellent hunters and will kill birds.
- BE AWARE OF PREDATORS Don’t place feeders in yards with a high number of predators. Un-covered compost piles and pet food dishes may be attracting native (rats, skunks, raccoons) and non-native predators (cats) that prey on birds.
- SHAKE OUT FEEDERS well before refilling (scrape when necessary).
- SCRUB OUT FEEDERS with 1:9 bleach/water solution, to prevent the spread of avian diseases.
- WATCH FOR SIGNS OF DISEASE (growths on feet and bills) and wash and remove feeders for a few weeks if diseased birds are observed at your feeder. Visit the Project Feeder Watch website for information on detecting diseased birds at your feeder.
Hummingbird Feeder Safety
Hummingbirds provide us with much enjoyment, and feeders can be used as excellent educational tools, but require strict maintenance. Consider adding to your backyard or schoolyard flowering plants, shrubs and trees as lower maintenance and natural Hummingbird feeders!
Cleaning your hummingbird feeder
- Hummingbirds can contract diseases from dirty feeders.
- Clean your feeder, every time you fill it, with a mild solution of dishwashing
liquid and hot water, using a bottle brush and toothbrush to really clean out the crevices.
- Refill your feeder if its cloudy (likely every several days in hot, humid weather). If there is often unused solution, consider a smaller feeder.
- Hummingbirds need consistently filled stations; if you go away a lot, don’t keep a feeder.
Filling your feeder
- Use a sugar solution of 1:4 sugar/water (i.e., 1 cup sugar + 4 cups water),
boil briefly, then store in a refrigerator until needed.
- Please do not use artificially colored solutions, they have been linked with birth and hatching abnormalities in hummingbirds.
Dealing with insect and ant visitors
Smear a little mineral oil on the feeding port and hanging wire to keep bees, wasps and ants at bay.
For more information contact prbo at prbo dot org
