How do peanut feeders work
Little explanation is needed to understand how a simple peanut feeder works, as its basically a wire mesh bird feeder with a lid that pops off or screws open.
How peanut feeders work relies on full accessibility to all bird species, thus the peanuts remain fully exposed to the elements as they are incompatible with bird feeders made to store seeds. Birds will cling to the wire as the peanuts stay in place, while birds poke their bills in between the wire to pull out pieces.
Little functionality is involved in a basic wire mesh peanut bird feeder, other than the ability to open then lid in a pull off or screw open action.
Similarly, there's such a device called a peanut wreath, that doesn't utilize a lid because the peanuts that are still in their shells, are pushed into this whole peanut feeder with a double-sided opening to pile in the peanuts.
Peanut bird feeders are probably the easiest bird feeders to manage at the bird feeding station, with little cost to replenish with new peanuts.
How a peanut feeder successfully operates is it relies on full accessibility to the peanuts, from all around the sides. Metal wire mesh used to construct 95% of the peanut feeder, is where wild birds that are able too, will perch or cling to the sides.
Many common backyard birds will eat peanuts in or out of a bird feeder, yet its important to remember many can't cling like this if they are too big, like Cardinals or Blue Jays, who will benefit being fed on the ground.
With peanut bird feeders attractive to unwanted birds or squirrels of course, then this popular bird feeder can be bought as the squirrel proof kind. What is essentially a regular peanut bird feeder centered in the middle of a squirrel proof cage.
Peanut feeders can attract other rodents like rats too mind, thus a squirrel proof cage won't cut it, as you must rely on a squirrel baffle to prevent climbing or descending rats.
Peanut feeders work to expose peanuts to the elements, with the benefit being this kind of bird feeder is made easier to access to wild birds than any other kind.
Birds pull peanuts out of wire
With the few different types of bird feeders you can buy that are exclusively designed to store unshelled peanuts; how they work will usually involve wild birds simply pecking at the exposed peanuts through wire gaps.
Traditional peanut feeders for birds will be a foot or so long metal wire feeder, which is suspended via the top with a base at the bottom.
Entire length of this peanut feeder will be covered in what is plastic coated wire - to protect you and our backyard birds getting cut - so the gaps in the peanut bird feeder provide enough space for peanuts to be accessed.
Gaps in the wire are only a centimeter or so wide to keep the peanuts trapped in the feeder, while its just wide enough for wild birds to poke their bills in.
No shortage of the birds who will feed off this type of bird feeder, yet it can be inaccessible to larger birds like Cardinals - or Blue Jays who especially like to feed on peanuts in or out of their shell.
With that, there is also such a thing as whole peanut bird feeders - similar to that I've explained above - or a wreath peanut feeder that is made to store peanuts in shells.
Will turn peanuts into pieces
How a peanut feeder works is that it essentially allows a multitude of wild birds to poke their bills in through the gaps in the wire in order to feed.
To keep the peanuts locked behind this wire the gaps must remain firmly together.
And thus it isn't possible for wild birds to pull large chunks or a whole peanut through the gaps of the peanut bird feeder.
Instead, you'll see Titmouse, of course all Woodpeckers to Blue Jays poking their bills in to break up the peanut, in order to feed. Don't expect a peanuts to be pulled out whole, when only small pieces can be eaten at a time.
Birds will turn peanuts into pieces thus its the only way peanuts can be accessed between the small wire gaps.
With peanuts needing to be broken up like this so birds can feed on them, a mess can develop on the ground below a peanut feeder - but less so if the same wire peanut feeder is mounted to a spill dish tray.
Peanuts stored open to elements
Unlike a seed bird feeder where a mix of seeds slowly filter to the bottom of the feeder and are then made accessible at openings; a peanut feeder can't be made as such, as peanuts risk jamming or sticking together.
Peanuts can fuse together if left in an outdoor environment, and one that is hot, thus they must be eaten in a way just as they happen to be poured in to the peanut feeder.
Birds will then cling or perch around the sides of any peanut bird feeder to pull out pieces of peanuts at all angles.
Peanuts are unable filter down to an opening where they'd be stored inside a clear tubular seed-like feeder for example, thus the wire mesh is the only way peanuts can be provided in an accessible bird feeder.
As a result, peanut bird feeders essentially expose the peanuts to the elements, come rain or shine, but that's OK as the peanuts do tend to last well.
Attached tray will assist birds
With all kinds of wild bird species coming to a peanut feeder to exclusively cling around the outside - while utilizing the wire too cling on to - this can restrict your peanut feeder use, and therefore could see little use at all.
Cardinals and Blue Jays are an example of wild birds who should probably be fed peanuts in a dish or high surface within your yard.
Whereas a peanut feeder can be used to attract more agile birds who are experts at using any type of bird feeder, like Titmouse are.
On occasions, those who experience an irregular number of Blue Jays or Cardinals more than any other species for most of the year, will need to adjust how they use a peanut bird feeder - if their ever going to see the peanuts eaten.
What you can do then is buy a peanut feeder that comes attached to a spill tray.
Spill tray is attachable thus doesn't have to be used if you don't want it, but you will because its means less able wild birds can use this tray as a place to perch.
Bonus being, this is a spill tray which means peanuts can be put in to the tray so they remain accessible to all birds, with no restrictions in place.
Conclude
Peanut bird feeders primarily operate in the same way as all types of suet feeders; suet is exposed to the elements much like peanuts are - while both peanuts and suet cakes (or fat balls) are eaten as wild birds poke their bills in between wire gaps.
Peanut bird feeders have far smaller plastic coated wire gaps to poke their bills in to feed, because the spacing of the gaps must still keep the peanuts locked in behind.
Unfortunately, wild birds can't take away a whole peanut, because the wire gaps will only allow birds to break up the peanuts in to chunks while its still locked in the feeder. If birds are ever going to feed on any of the peanuts locked away, birds must break them into pieces as they cling to the outside of the peanut feeder.
You'll notice all peanut bird feeders are exposed to the elements, because its the only way peanuts can be fed to wild birds without issues.
You see, peanuts will congeal and therefore get stuck if stored in what is a clear tube bird feeder made for seeds; yet peanuts tend to jam in this kind of feeder which is why peanuts are made accessible from every angle.
Peanut feeders do have their limits, which is larger bird are unable to feed on this type of bird feeder, because they can't cling in the way this feeder relies upon.
Instead, larger birds like Blue Jays can perch on an attached but detachable spill tray which will also provide peanuts outside of the peanut feeder.
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