How far away from window should a bird feeder be

Often distance between window to bird feeders won't make a difference, thus to offset bird feeders to prevent them being aligned with your window is the best course of action.

How far away from window should a bird feeder be is approximately 8 feet like it is for most people tempting birds to feed as you observe in the window. Push the bird feeders back if your yard space allows it, only to offset the bird feeders rather than keeping them aligned with the window to prevent collisions.

Depending on if the position of your bird feeder is in parallel with your window, this could be an issue you don't have to be too concerned about after all.

When you do have to be concerned about the position of your bird feeders, is if the feeders themselves are aligned with wild birds route on their way to the bird feeder pole.

Birds can fly directly to a bird feeder hung up on a pole or in a tree with a glass window located directly behind it. Its this location of bird feeders align with a birds flight path that can cause birds to be harmed in a window crash.

Safest location of bird feeders near windows is if birds must dive down at a height, or if the window is avoided all together when birds pass by on their way to the bird feeders.

However with all that being said you can't guarantee a wild birds safety as a collision into a panel of glass is absolutely possible regardless of safeguards in place.

Similarly to how you would attract birds to window feeders then, you'd stick on stationary such as sticky notes or colorful tape to the window - spaced out at a foot or less in a grid pattern - which will tell birds there is something to crash into while hiding any reflections.

Whereas wild birds would otherwise believe there's more yard, and therefore more bird feeders to explore in the glass, due to the realistic yard reflection.

Birds risk crashing into house windows because its common for people to situate bird feeder poles, or any hanging feeders - near to windows so birds can be observed as they feed.

Unfortunately, this isn't something to avoid as its normal to situate bird feeders low down, which is always going to be at the same height as ground floor windows.

Safe 8 feet at the minimum

How far away from window should a bird feeder by hung or stood on the ground would be 8 foot at first - with an option to move bird feeders further back if necessary.

To situate bird feeders at only 8 feet away isn't going to be a safe distance for sure, as its still to close too the window to keep birds safe as they approach bird feeders.

However an 8 foot distance is a good start providing there's room to move bird feeders deeper into the yard. Birds land on a bird feeder pole without connecting with the window most of the time - but this isn't to say they won't in the future.

Keep in mind if you don't have any history of birds crashing into your window due to bird feeders located near it, then its probably an issue you don't have to worry about.

What could be happening is birds notice there's a glass panel near your bird feeder due to movement within the house, or indeed there's no reflection at all thus birds can see its not more yard behind the glass window.

To hang or locate bird feeders only 8 feet away from your window will be possible with most yard sizes, although extra caution is needed in super small yards.

Locating a bird feeder near to a window under 8 feet is pretty much like attracting birds to your windowsill, thus its vital you deter birds by making the window itself crash proof.

Move to 12 ft. if no birds arrive

If you believe 8 foot won't do it for you with far more room in your yard to take advantage of, then please don't wait for me to tell you when you can push bird feeders further back.

At a minimum of 12 feet to keep bird feeders away from your window, this set distance becomes less problematic because fewer people don't have the space available.

But to push bird feeders 12 feet or more away from the window can certainly lead to fewer birds crashing into a window, that is normally setup to cause accidents such as collisions.

With that said, if you keep your bird feeders hung at a minimum of 8 feet away from the window, and therefore your home - it could be possible the bird feeders will be invisible to visiting birds, thus will always be missed out.

I want you to feed birds not to far away from the window as I want you to benefit watching birds feeding in your yard.

With that it could lead to your bird feeders being located out of sight with birds never noticing what bird food you have for them in bird feeders hanging up on a pole.

Similarly, you can hang bird feeders up in a tree which can absolutely reduce accidental crashes into the window - because birds like to forage up a tree as they do in nature. Although bear in mind, a tree reflecting in a close by window can still be an issue.

Bird-proof window with tape

What I can tell you to be absolutely sure there's no risks of birds come crashing into your living room window, is to set up effective bird proof window tape on the glass.

So here is what you do, take anything that is weatherproof which can be stuck outside, and therefore can be used for exterior use, when stuck on a panel of glass window.

Stationary must be stuck outside of the glass as an indoor placement won't trick birds; they'd still believe there's more yard to explore because the outdoor environment will still reflect on the stationary used internally.

You can use colorful sticky notes, colorful tape or anything that is bold with color really.

You'd then cover the whole of the glass panel that isn't too far away from the bird feeders to create the illusion of a wall in which birds will avoid bumping into.

For this to work correctly the stationary must be spaced out in a grid like pattern, between 6 to 12 feet apart.

Distancing the stationary too far apart will provide a big enough gap for birds to believe they can fly through - when they will just crash into the window.

Making use of a window bird feeder is safe but can be trouble unless you apply stationary in this exact same way.

Inside of window disturbance

You know what if birds can tell there's a panel of glass to avoid then you'll be one of the lucky ones to have your window facing a north, north/west direction.

South facing homes in direct sunshine cause a reflection of your yard in the window which tends to be darkened - although reflection of your yard can certainly happen in a window facing north.

What I am getting at is a dark window will cause a reflection so real, it can appear there's more yard in the window to even a person.

Birds will crash into a window believing there's more yard to explore because their eyesight isn't as impressive.

Where or how high a bird feeder should be hung on a pole, branch or bracket - with the bird feeder pole in particular often visible in a window reflection - a bird could attempt to head for it in the window.

What you can do during the day is open the window to move the reflection or cover the part of the window with stationary to hide the bird feeders reflection in the glass.

With that, movement within the home can stop birds flying towards you, thus its best you don't stay too quiet when birds land on the bird feeders - as it could lead to you preventing birds heading towards the window.

To summarize

What you are hoping is to avoid birds accidentally crashing into the window on their way to the bird feeder pole.

It is possible birds collide with windows because they believe there's more yard to explore, along with your bird feeders reflecting in the glass.

To begin with you can situate bird feeders up to 8 feet away from your window, as most people do in order to get an up close view of birds eating out of bird feeders you've setup - with the intent of observing their behavior.

I can assure 8 feet is a safe spot particularly if your bird feeders are not aligned with your window - which would lead to the window being directly in a birds flight path as they come to your bird feeders.

If birds visit your bird feeders at great height or if they must sideswipe by a window then your out of trouble.

With that a bird feeder situated near any window can still lead to collisions in due course.

Why wait until an accident occurs when bird feeders can be pushed back up to a safer 12 feet. And I know its not that far back but at this point it isn't possible for most people to move their bird feeders again due to limited space.

What you can prioritize then rather than just pushing bird feeders back, is to offset the bird feeder far away from your window on the side.

To avoid collisions, you can bird proof your window closest to your bird feeders by applying sticky notes or colorful bold tape in a grid like pattern. The idea behind this is to let birds know there is no more yard to explore within a reflection that will now be hidden.

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