Is it GOOD to feed wild birds
Doubts about feeding wild birds any type of food in your backyard is not without reason, so you must go cautiously at first until you can get to grips with their diet plan.
It is good to feed wild birds in your yard with specialty bird food only, to use scraps at home it can get more complicated. Birds do rely on bird feeders in times when food in the wild is scarce; due to long spells of drought or cold, they therefore rely on people to feed them on a healthy supply of quality bird food.
What can be more exciting then attracting wild birds to your yard by feeding them an abundance of food in which they basically eat in the wild.
Consider seeds or nuts mostly with suet or mealworms a real favorite of there's - with most of the birds that visit backyards within the United States eating this or similar food in the wild.
It can only be a good idea to feed birds daily because this is what they require to survive.
I would recommend to subsidized wild birds with protein rich food in wintertime, such as all kinds of nuts and seeds to help them replace lost energy as its used up more in cold.
Come summertime you can then whip out the oats, all types of fruits and mealworms, including mild cheese if you wish.
You still must feed wild birds an abundance of seeds throughout but going more carefully with nuts come spring through summer. Spring is nesting season so birds will bring whole peanuts back to the nest for their young, where it becomes a choking hazard.
It therefore can be dangerous to feed whole peanuts to birds this time of year, but you still can if you were to crush up the peanuts first.
It is GOOD to feed birds
Why it is good to feed wild birds in your backyard and in many respects the ducks at the pond, is to use proper bird food is safe.
Controversy surrounding feeding wild birds bread is a genuine one for sure, but if you and your family were to continue to feed birds on a diet that replicates what they eat in the wild, no health issues can arise.
Where it can go wrong while feeding birds is only feeding them bread, as many people do. And so to is feeding wild birds chocolate, salt content and other items that is poisonous.
What can be an experiment with a few natural nuts or fruits you have to hand, can be fun to feed to birds, but it can turn to something a little more serious by using foods you don't know the effects it can have on wildlife.
As you invest in feeding birds out of a bird feeder, feeding platform and a bird bath along the way - only use the safe, proven food groups of seeds, peanuts, mealworms and fruit.
Its fun, safe and benefits wild birds' hugely with a hobby that you should get into, and continue to as long as you do it with birds health in mind.
Birds can struggle in the wild
In reality, wild birds can struggle in nature to feed on what would be mostly seeds off plants or blooming flowers, or fruits found in the wild.
Summertime brings an abundance of natural food, full of protein and vitamins for birds to go about their business with no health issues.
What these summer months bring, especially in the sunny States like Texas, is a drought or a long spell of dry weather can destroy common backyard wild birds' natural habitat.
No more seeds, nuts or wild fruits to be found, with insects killed off if they can't feed or drink - and so the circle of like comes to an end.
Where you come in is inviting wild birds into your backyard with a wide variety of wild bird food, hopefully setup in the confines of a hanging bird feeder.
Not all birds eat out of feeder nor are the able too, so its a good idea to feed birds on the ground, or place seeds or peanuts around the yard in an open area.
Similarly, wintertime requires intervention on your behalf as snow on the ground blankets wild birds natural food resources. In this time you can offer bird food daily but shake off extra snow or disturb the food to prevent it frosting over.
Guarantee an abundance of food
While wild bird food in their natural habitat, among trees, wooded areas and in vegetation can be ruined or run low in poor weather, so only you can offer more food than is needed.
Guarantee an abundance of wild bird food on a daily basis and wait for the possibility of more bird species than you could ever imagine come to your yard, than they did before.
If the presence of bird food is continued to be offered to birds daily, they would be sure to visit daily.
Its proven wild birds do have a memory that can last up to six months, so there's no way birds will forget your backyard if you were to keep it up.
Its probably best to replenish the bird feeders daily and use more feeders to cater to as many birds as possible.
In this time there's no harm to offer a bowl full of water for them to re-hydrate or bathe - but this can be achieved with a bird bath.
I recommend to use a platform feeder because then you can try different fruits, nuts and other yummy treats for the birds in an unrestricted manner
Return kindness with visits
Its hugely beneficial to be feeding wild birds in your yard a range of food, with your kindness returned with visits.
Birds can only return to your backyard to feed, so don't expect anything else for your generosity.
It is possible to train birds to feed out of your hand in this time, or why no enjoy their visitation with the kids just for the fun.
Birds don't all feed off the ground or on elevated points, so you'd soon realize to place bird food around the backyard is more beneficial, as you begin to understand wild bird behavior.
You'd get to understand what food they eat, which is eaten more often, or what is not eaten at all - thus allowing to reduce certain foods while replacing it with popular ones.
In time the food that is eaten quickly would be what's mostly used in your yard, so in time you'll understand its not a good idea to fill the bird feeders up to the top, if you know its not eaten as quickly as you'd expect.
No downside to your generosity
If you were to follow safe yet not so strict rules for feeding wild birds in your backyard, I don't see any downsides to your new hobby.
It can only be a good thing to feed wild birds, as the birds get to feed on much needed high in nutrition food - while you can enjoy their daily visits to your yard.
Downsides may be few and far between, but it can get serious if you begin to experiment with foods if you don't know the health benefits, or lack of.
Certainly birds can eat bacteria ridden food if you don't realize it yourself, so indeed birds can become ill no thanks to you.
In that respect bird feeders can be bad as they tend to be covered in germs if not cleaned out properly.
To guarantee no issues with your birds, only buy wild bird food that is from reputable sellers, or stores or supermarkets known throughout the US.
To summarize
It can only be good to feed wild birds because who doesn't benefit being fed on a daily basis, in which wild birds benefit more over other wildlife.
Its not always when times are hard, to feed wild birds all year round is not a problem, with visits to your yard a guarantee as you attract birds with a tempting bribe.
Birds can suffer in times of need, be it a drought in summertime or when food in the wild becomes sparse because of cold winter months.
This is where you come in by offering wild birds food hanging up in bird feeders, on the ground or scattered around your backyard.
Downsides exist for sure, so you mustn't become complacent in the process. Birds can't eat everything nor would they try - but certain food people eat can be poisonous to birds so you must be cautious with new foods.
Guarantee a variety of bird food to cater too as many wild birds as possible. Kindness is returned as the birds visit early morning through the afternoon, just before it gets dark.
It is good to feed wild birds providing you don't risk their health for the sake of cheap, inferior foods - or food that can be a choking hazard to their young.
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