While many backyard feeder birds migrate to warmer climates for winter, there are many that stick around during the coldest months. Cardinals, chickadees, woodpeckers, even some grosbeaks and finches are a few of the birds that stay in the area year-round. Feeding wild birds during the winter, especially February, can be very helpful to wild birds because they need a lot of energy and nutrition, and natural food sources can be scarce. Many of the naturally available seeds, grains and insects that wild birds love to eat are either dormant or covered with snow. At the same time wild birds are using more energy to find food and shelter and stay warm.
Here’s how to help wild birds by feeding them in February:
- Keep feeders filled – they may not empty as quickly as in the Spring or Summer, but the source of food is more important to the wild birds that are wintering over. Keep your feeders full and the birds will visit your yard more often and stay longer.
- Now’s a great time to try suet – if you haven’t tried feeding suet cakes, now is the perfect time to try it. Suet is made with rendered beef tallow and mixed with a variety of seeds, fruits or nuts. It is most commonly found in 6×6-inch cakes that are fed in small, cage feeders. The nutty suets are very popular with chickadees and woodpeckers, but there are a lot of birds that love the high-energy. Kaytee offers a full range of suet with fruits, nuts and seeds.
- Choose a blend with more black oil sunflower seeds – black oil sunflower has excellent oil and nutritional content that make it perfect for winter feeding, and it’s easy for birds to eat because it has a thin shell. Kaytee’s Songbird and Birder’s blend have a lot of rich, healthful black oil sunflower seeds.
- Look for a rich variety blend – black oil sunflower is a great base, but also look for nuts, peanuts and fruits. These specialty ingredients are also great sources of energy with high protein, oils and nutrients. Kaytee’s Nut & Fruit Blend is a winter-feeding standard
- Keep finch feeders filled with Nyjer® or Nyjer-based blends – Nyjer seed is a great source of energy and the favorite food for finches. Kaytee’s Nyjer® and Wild Finch Food™ are excellent choices for winter-time finches.
- Freezing temperatures can make providing water a challenge, but a small heater or wiggler can help keep it liquid. Birds need water just as much in the winter months, so going the extra step to provide it in winter will make your backyard a favorite.
Taking these steps will make your backyard a favorite with the local wild birds!