Do bird feeders make a mess

One way to know if your bird feeders make a mess is to setup a single or group of feeders to know you can reply on ground feeding birds to eat up spilled bird food.

When birds feed they seem to throw food as they eat, when in fact they are in the process of breaking up seeds or peanuts, which appears to make a mess below the bird feeder. Bird feeders can make a mess on the ground below with wild birds responsible, but the mess on the ground is quickly eaten up.

For most of us, the mess naturally created under a bird feeder disappears via changing weather conditions, or it rots away.

But much like me, I don't see the mess because my bird feeders are located on the lawn.

When I do spot seeds or peanuts being thrown to the ground, I notice the same birds dive onto the lawn to pick up their spoils. And where these same birds remain on the feeder, ground feeding birds devoid of using the feeder, scoop up food directly below it.

I can depend on a few pigeons for that, including Sparrows, Blue Jays and Cardinals.

I believe then bird feeders don't make a mess, but I don't speak for everyone.

Where bird feeders do make a mess, it could be where the bird feeders are located. To hang feeders where birds can forage on the ground, basically on the lawn - would see a better clean up than a feeder situated on the deck.

When feeding birds too much seeds, peanuts and suet, bird food can get throw purposely as birds dig deep into too much bird food in the way of the good stuff they want.

Careful as you go then by offering little bird food at a time, while offering bird seeds over the lawn, or bird seed based suet that is kept a little more tidy.

Its not easy to maintain a bird feeder, as feeders can get mess too, but where feeders make a mess, it all tends to work out for itself.

What you must prioritize is there is such a thing as no grow bird seeds, so if you wish to avoid bird seeds growing under your bird feeder, be sure to use no grow bird seeds.

Feeders make a mess

Oh for sure bird feeders are the cause of quite the mess in your yard, with birds mostly responsible, but through no fault of their own.

When birds feed it appears to you and me birds are actually throwing their food out of the bird feeder; when in fact they are naturally biting throw seed shells, or indeed biting into peanuts with a flick of their necks.

Result of that is most bird food ends up being swallowed, while the rest is throw over the yard.

Feeders therefore do make a mess which is a result of birds natural feeding behavior, so they are not throwing food, but unintentionally wasting what they are currently eating.

No bird species is at fault or is tidier than the other, the mess caused by feeding birds is a habit shown through all wild birds.

What you feed them can create more or less mess, but in truth there's really little you can do to reduce waste dropped onto the ground below the bird feeder.

Unavoidable mess dropped below

And here is where the mess is created when using a single feeder, or worse when you have a group of bird feeders located in a single location.

Seeds, peanuts and suet would drop to the ground directly below the feeder where birds perch, or indeed a tree branch or garden object where birds prefer to perch when they prefer to feed in an isolated environment away from the feeder.

Mess below bird feeders is certainly unavoidable, with nothing you can do to control this.

What is remarkable, and this relates to mostly seeds; is birds that feed off hanging feeders, will indeed drop down to the ground to pick up any waste.

Similarly, not all birds are cutout or agile enough to perch on light, swinging bird feeders, such as Blue Jays or Cardinals - so they revert to feeding off the ground, just as they do in the wild.

As a matter of fact, while bird feeders do make a mess as birds unintentionally throw food that you cannot stop, other birds simply pick up the scraps underneath the feeding area, including Blackbirds.

Limit bird food options

I believe you can keep the mess under bird feeders to a minimum if you have seen this to be an issue already.

It involves only offering certain bird foods to feed birds while leaving out the messiest.

First thing to know is most of your common backyard birds are seed eaters, followed by peanuts. I would then ask you to not stop feeding these kind of bird food, but offer it more in suet form.

Birds love suet of the seed and peanut kind, and tend to make less of a mess with this type of food in use - but that is not to say the suet bird feeder can get a bit messy, well, more greasy if I'm honest.

Suet can get messy on the ground below, but birds are inclined to clean up on the ground.

You'd also have to stop feeding birds scraps out of your kitchen if this is the cause of the litter, while changing out the types of bird feeders in use.

Hanging bird feeders offer no protection against a mess being made below them, but something like a wooden platform feeder uses are large flat feeding area where food remains in the area, and where bird food is suppose to be eaten.

Feeder 'keep tidy' solutions

What bird feeders you currently have in use don't have to be changed or replaced at all, as there's ways to add 'keep tidy' gimmicks on the classic bird feeders in use.

You can hang what is known as a seed hoop: its a large rounded net that hangs below a hanging bird feeder with a universal connection - where seeds and other bird food is caught before it hits the ground.

It can depend on the design of your current bird feeders, as the seed hoop needs an area to hook onto.

Similarly, you can replace bird feeders that create a mess by going for a seed feeder, or feeders that hold other bird food - with a large, wide tray connected to the base. Here is where food is caught and where birds can continue to eat what was caught.

Additionally, there is such thing as a bird feeder on a pole, and half way up this pole is where a bird seed tray is mounted, with the level chosen by you.

But again there is nothing better than preventing a mess building up under your feeders, than relying on the use of a platform bird feeder of any kind.

It can be mounted, hung or be on the ground, the made in wood platform feeder uses a large wide feeding area, where bird food often remains in place.

Conclusion

Bird feeders do make a mess for some people, but on the plus side wild birds that are exclusive ground feeders tend to clean up the waste.

Not everyone is lucky to have an abundance of ground feeding birds to hand, so then the mess is allowed to build up over time.

In which case bird feeders can make a mess directly below, but birds do their best to clean up some of it.

Little you can do to prevent this as its in wild birds feeding behavior to bite into food to crush it up; so as it would appear birds are making a mess, they are actually unintentionally throwing food on the ground.

You can try to limit bird food in use as little at a time, or use something like only suet.

If else, you can invest in a keep tidy tray or netting to catch food when its thrown out of the feeder, directly below it.

Truth be told, there's little you can do to prevent bird feeders making a mess. Birds are responsible, but its in their nature to what appears to be them throwing food.

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