National Bird Feeding Month

February is National Bird Feeding Month! Established in 1994 and meant to bring attention to the plight of native bird species and their survival during the harsh, winter months. Many small bird species actually die in their sleep during the winter, thus needing our help for their survival even more. February is the perfect time to clean and fill your bird feeders, break out your binoculars, and have your camera ready to capture the feathered friends in your neighborhood.Depending on where you live, you might want to also provide basic shelter for your native, wild bird species, in addition to food and a fresh water source. Those bird shelters, feeders, and bird baths need to be placed away from predators, including the dogs and cats who reside in your home. Planting native plant species near your feeders will provide additional shelter as well as potential food sources in the form of fruit, berries, and insects. You will want to clean your bird houses and feeders on a regular basis using a mild soap and warm water to help your bird friends avoid contracting an upper respiratory infection which can be deadly.Research done on wild bird populations that utilize feeders during the winter months, shows that most birds visit those feeders three times a day, basically early in the morning, midday, and at sundown. If you are providing supplemental feeding for your local birds, you will want to make sure the feeder is clean and well stocked at those times of day! Providing a high quality, nutritional food is important, including millet seeds and peanuts. Sunflower seeds are something that all birds seem to enjoy, with the black shelled variety being particularly beneficial for birds as those have a higher oil content. Providing currants, small pieces of apple, pear, and even cut up grapes are appreciated by most birds. Remember not to put out large pieces of fruit or whole peanuts in the spring and summer though as those are a choking hazard for baby birds! If your yard and feeders are regularly visited by smaller bird species, then make sure to choose smaller seeds and dice that fresh fruit into manageable sized pieces. While lots of folks like to offer birds bread, bread has basically no nutritional value, particularly during the harsh winter months when life-sustaining foods are scarce. And never put out nuts that are salted as birds are unable to metabolize that ingredient!Here is my favorite squirrel-proof bird feeder: And if you don't mind feeding the squirrels along with the birds, this platform feeder will be a bit of a challenge for the squirrels, but easy-peasy for the birds:For up close bird watching, try this window-mounted feeder:For those of you fortunate enough to have hummingbirds in your yard, planting bee balm, lupines, and foxglove will be much appreciated by those littlest of birds. And if you are filling a hummingbird feeder, remember not to use any food coloring. The easiest recipe is simply 1 part sugar to 4 parts water, changing the feeder every other day, and doing a thorough cleaning to keep mold at bay.Here's my favorite hummingbird feeder (having two means one is in use while the other is being cleaned and dried for the next go-round).