Summer Photography Competition

We've just launched our new photography competition titled "Birds Feeding In Your Back Garden"

We had a great response to our last competition last Christmas and now the evenings are stretching out & the days are warmer we're sure we'll see some really stunning photographs in the weeks to come.

The winning prize is a £50 voucher to spent at http://www.wildbirdfood.uk.com.

You must take the photograph yourself (no cropping from other websites) and you must agree to us using your image(s) on our social media streams. We will of course, credit you for your hard work though! All entries MUST be posted to our Facebook wall -https://www.facebook.com/WildBirdFoods

So fill up your feeders with loads of delicious seeds & nuts and get snapping away.

Closing date for entries is 5pm on Thursday 31st July 2014.

Feeding the Birds

By feeding the birds all year round we give them a better chance to survive the periods of natural food shortage, whenever they may occur. Providing birds with supplementary food brings them closer for us to see their exciting behaviour and wonderful colours. Attracting birds to your garden has other benefits too because they will naturally hunt for the insects and pests that are living on your plants. Don't be too tidy, leaving your perennial top growth until spring not only protects the crown but also provides areas that birds can forage for over-wintering insects. Now the weather is deteriorating and food sources are becoming rarer, the birds rely even more on garden feeding stations. Not only does this see them through severe weather and food shortages but it ensures that they will enter next years breeding season in good condition.

Put out food and water on a regular basis and in severe weather check your feeders every day. Birds require high energy (high fat) foods during the cold winter weather as they need to maintain their body reserves to survive the frosty nights. Use only good quality food and scraps. Always adjust the quantity given to the demand, and never allow uneaten food to accumulate around the feeders. Once you establish a feeding routine, try not to change it.

Kennedy Wild Bird Food - Nut Feeders

There are different mixes of bird food and the form they come in will determine whether you use a hanging feeder or scatter on bird tables or the ground. The better mixtures contain plenty of flaked maize, sunflower seeds, and peanut granules. Small seeds, such as millet, attract mostly house sparrows, dunnocks, finches, reed buntings and collared doves, while flaked maize is taken readily by blackbirds. Mixes that contain chunks or whole nuts are suitable for winter feeding only as young birds would choke on the larger pieces.

High fat or oil content is especially important in winter feeding. Black sunflower seeds have a higher oil content than striped ones, and so they are much better. Peanuts are rich in fat and are popular with tits, greenfinches, house sparrows, nuthatches, great spotted woodpeckers and siskins. Crushed or grated nuts attract robins, dunnocks and even wrens. Peanuts can be high in a natural toxin (aflatoxin) which can kill birds, so ensure you buy peanuts from a reputable source that have been aflatoxin tested. Nyjer seeds also have a high oil content but because they are so small they need a special type of seed feeder. It is worth the effort though because they attract families of goldfinches and siskins.

Another good winter food source is bird cake, suet treats and fat balls. Remove the nylon mesh bags before putting the fat ball out because they can trap and injure birds. Polyunsaturated margarines or vegetable oils are unsuitable for birds. Unlike humans, birds need high levels of saturated fat, such as raw suet and lard. They need the high energy content to keep warm in the worst of the winter weather, since their body reserves are quickly used up, particularly on cold winter nights.

Kennedy Wild Bird Food - Nut Feeders

Hygiene is as important with birds as it is with humans, so remove any mouldy or stale food from your feeding station. Many moulds are harmless, but some can cause respiratory infections in birds and stale food provides a breeding ground for salmonella bacteria. At least one type of salmonella causes death among such species as greenfinches and house sparrows. If food turns mouldy or stale on your bird table, you are probably placing out too large a quantity for the birds to eat in one day. Also try to avoid large quantities of food scattered on the ground as this may attract mice and rats which carry diseases.

Take a look at the huge range of bird feeders and bird food we have on the website. The food you put out will determine the birds you attract and also what sort of feeding station you need. Aesthetics and practicalities come into it too as you will be the one maintaining and replenishing the feeder. You can buy a feeder as a treat for yourself or put together a selection of different feeders with the appropriate food as a gift for the ornithologist in the family!

We have a huge selection of nut feeders & wild bird feed in store & online so come & visit us soon - wee look forward to seeing you.

Peter, Anne & the team.

The Effects of Climate Change

We've been hearing about the effects of climate change for well over a decade now & we've just read this great article on www.birdwatch.co.uk …

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Little Egret is a species that possibly
has benefited from climate change
with its recent spread north, but
many other species will suffer
and possibly rendered extinct.
Photo: Andy Vernon
(commons.wikimedia.org)

A UN climate impact report released today gives the clearest and most comprehensive evidence yet that life on earth is in deep trouble.

The report reinforces the sobering view that climate change is real, it’s happening now and it’s affecting the lives and the livelihoods of people, as well as the sensitive ecosystems that sustain life.

It is the second in a series of four reports being prepared by the world’s leading climate authorities in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It assesses the impacts, adaptation and vulnerability of human and natural systems, the observed impacts and future risks of climate change, and the potential for and limits to adaptation.

Samantha Smith, leader of the WWF Global Climate and Energy Initiative, said that for the first time the report highlights the dramatic difference of impacts between a world where we act now to cut emissions – which now come mostly from using fossil fuels – and a world where we fail to act quickly.

“This report tells us that we have two clear choices: cut emissions now and invest in adaption, and have a world that has just barely manageable risks, or do nothing and face a world of devastating and unmanageable risks and impacts.

”The report makes it clear that we still have time to act. We can limit climate instability and adapt to some of the changes we see now. But without immediate and specific action, we are in danger of going irreversibly too far. With this risk posed so clearly, we have to hope that the next IPCC report which is being released in Berlin in April, will provide us with strong statements on the solutions that we know exist,” she said.

Sandeep Chamling Rai, head of the WWF delegation to the meeting, warned that despite the warnings given by the IPCC in its reports over the past 20 years – reinforced by the release of the report today – the gap between science and what governments are doing remains huge.

“The science is clear and the debate is over: climate change is happening and humans are the major cause of emissions, driven mainly by our dependence on fossil fuels. This is driving global warming. This report sets out the impacts we already see, the risks we face in the future and the opportunities to act. It has been accepted by the member governments of the IPCC. Now it is up to people to hold their governments to account, to get them to act purposefully and immediately,” he said.

The risks of collective inaction are greatest for developing countries, said Rai. “All countries are vulnerable, but developing countries have a greater sensitivity with more people living in poverty and fewer resources to respond to climate disasters. We need to put in place measures that will slow down warming, and put us on a fair and just transition to a sustainable world. The report shows that ambitious emissions cuts now can reduce the risk of climate change in the second half of this century.”

The regional assessments – given in depth in the report – show with a great degree of certainty what the impacts will be in the key regions of the world.

“”We now have a better understanding of how climate impacts will affect people and nature in different regions. International adaptation efforts need to be intensified to adequately respond to such varied impacts,” said Rai. 

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Spring Sale is extended through to April

We've extended our Spring Sale on Peanuts & Sunflower Hearts throughout March & April.
You can now buy 25kg of Economy Peanuts for just £39.99 & 25kg of Premium Sunflower Hearts for just £38.99
Follow the links above now to place your order or call the office on 01778 342665.
All orders over £50 qualify for a 5% discount so why not browse around our bird feeders & live bird feed to add to your order?

Bird Migration

Migration is the moving from one place to another, usually in search of more favourable conditions for either feeding or breeding.
Many songbirds migrate at night and feed and rest during the daytime. The air is also cooler and denser at night and so there is:

• Less risk of dehydration.
• Less energy used to provide lift (the force that acts upwards).
• Less turbulence, caused by thermals rising from the ground, to throw the birds off course.

Other birds fly at very high altitude for a similar effect, for example: airline pilots have observed Whooper Swans at altitudes of 8850 metres (29 000 feet).
Scientists believe that the bird's internal clock and cues taken from seasonal events govern the timing of their migration. At the appropriate time, the birds prepare for migration by building up their fat reserves by eating insects and berries. Some species, particularly warblers, complete their migration in one non-stop flight and can double their body weight, while others stop en route to feed.
Additionally, some species, such as Willow Warbler, may moult their feathers ready for the migration, while others will moult only when they arrive at their destination.
The tremendous feat of travelling thousands of miles is all the more miraculous when some species are known to return to the same location year after year. Scientists think that birds use their sense of smell to follow odours, their remarkable eyesight to follow the Sun, the stars, the Earth's magnetic field, and landmarks, and wind directions to achieve navigation. Interestingly, some species take a different route in their summer migration to the one in the winter.
From the birdwatcher's point of view, there are three types of bird visitors: summer visitors, winter visitors, and passage visitors, and can offer splendid views of large flocks of birds and hundreds of different species.
Summer Visitors
In Britain, our summer visitors are birds that have migrated in the spring from around the Mediterranean and Africa. They do this to improve the chances of rearing young. In they stayed in Africa the competition for limited food supplies would be high, but in the more northern latitudes there is more food and more daylight hours in which to search for it. However, staying in Eurasia during the winter months when food becomes short would lead to starvation and death, though some of our traditional migrants, like the Blackcap and Chiffchaff, are now over-wintering in Britain.
Our summer visitors include Swallows, House Martins, Swifts, and warblers (e.g. Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff and Whitethroat).
Willow Warblers and many other warblers fly non-stop and take 4 or 5 days to complete their migration. On the other hand, Swallows can take 2 or 3 months to complete their migration as they stop off every few days to roost and feed.
Winter Visitors
These species migrate from their breeding grounds in Scandinavia and northern Europe where food becomes hidden under snow and ice.
Examples are the thrush family: Redwing, Fieldfare, Blackbird and Robin. While some of these are true migrants, we also have native migrants, for example: tits and wrens moving from the countryside to urban areas, starlings flying from their city roosts to suburban gardens during the daytime, thrushes flying southwards from northern Britain, etc.
Passage Visitors and Irruptions
Many passage visitors are sea birds and waders, such as Black Tern, Solitary Sandpiper, but also others such as Serin and Bluethroat.
Irruptions are sudden invasions of birds. One of the better known examples are Waxwings, which sometimes move into Britain when rowan berries have failed in Scandinavia and northern Europe.

Winter Wild Bird Care

In recent years, there has been a huge growth of interest in feeding garden birds in the UK. This makes a significant contribution to the annual food requirements of many bird populations. At a time when human changes to the environment are a major threat to many other species, garden bird feeding has never been more important.
It used to be that animals were either kept, and therefore our responsibility, or wild, and not. But now it is not so simple. Because of the size of the human population and the extent to which we use or control the environment, we greatly, and often directly, influence the welfare and fates of very many wild animals. This has brought increasing responsibility for them. Human/garden bird interactions are one of the front lines in the development of this new relationship with wildlife. Having taken over a large proportion of the land for housing, industry and farming, providing food for wild birds is one way of helping to redress the balance.

Bird Feeding

Providing birds with food will bring them closer for you to marvel at their varieties, fascinating behaviour and wonderful colours. Feeding birds is also an ideal way to enthuse children about wildlife. This supplementary feeding can't provide all the natural proteins and vitamins that adult and young birds need, so it's important to create and manage your garden to provide a source of natural foods as well, through well-managed lawns, shrubs and flowerbeds. If you provide both natural and supplementary food, your garden will be turned into a wildlife haven and will be visited year-round by a host of different birds. It is important to feed your garden birds responsibly and safely. By following a few simple guidelines, you can play a valuable role in helping your local birds overcome periods of natural food shortage, survive periods of severe winter weather and come into good breeding condition in the spring.

Bird Food

There are a variety of different types of bird food available to buy. Here is a guide to what to feed your garden birds and when.

Bird Seed Mixtures

There are different mixes for feeders and for bird tables and ground feeding. The best mixtures contain plenty of flaked maize, sunflower seeds, and peanut granules. Small seeds, such as millet, attract mostly house sparrows, dunnocks, finches, reed buntings and collared doves, while flaked maize is taken readily by blackbirds. Tits and greenfinches favour peanuts and sunflower seeds. Some seed mixes now contain added suet pellets, fruit or pieces of mealworm. Mixes that contain chunks or whole nuts are suitable for winter feeding only. Pinhead oatmeal is excellent for many birds. Wheat and barley grains are often included in seed mixtures, but they are really only suitable for pigeons, doves and pheasants - which feed on the ground and rapidly increase in numbers, frequently deterring the smaller species. Avoid seed mixtures that have split peas, beans, dried rice or lentils as again only the large species can eat them dry. These are added to some cheaper seed mixes to bulk them up. Any mixture containing green or pink lumps should also be avoided as these are dog biscuit, which can only be eaten when soaked.

Black Sunflower Seeds

Also known as black oil seeds, these are an excellent, economical all-year-round food; rich in energy-giving oils and protein, and in many areas are even more popular than peanuts. The oil content is higher in black than striped ones, and so they are much better. Black sunflower seeds are an excellent food source as almost all wild birds that visit your garden will readily eat them. The husk of the black sunflower seed is thin, so it can be easily broken by wild birds, even those with small beaks. They are also versatile and can be fed using seed feeders, a bird table or on the ground. Black sunflower seeds are eaten by the following wild bird species: blue tits, blackbirds, bullfinches, chaffinches, coal tits, goldfinches, great tits, green finches, sparrows, siskins, nuthatches, robins, song thrushes, starlings, swallows, tree sparrows, wrens, and many others - providing them all with an essential high energy diet.

Sunflower Hearts

The edible kernel of the sunflower seed, sunflower hearts offer the highest calorific value of any individual seed for wild birds. They are more expensive than black sunflower seeds but they have two advantages. First, the birds can feed more quickly because they do not have to remove the husk. Second, the lack of the husk means that there is no unsightly pile of husks left behind on the ground after the birds have had their fill. Sunflower Hearts are an excellent, very high 'energy content' food, with all year round appeal for a wide variety of birds. Whether they are fed from a seed feeder, bird table or on the ground, 'top-ups' will be needed far more frequently than with most other bird foods in order to retain the high level of species that sunflower hearts will attract.

Niger seeds

These are small and black with a high oil content and require a purpose designed feeder due to their smaller size. Niger seed is often used as a 'tonic' for birds. It is becoming increasingly popular, and has helped reverse the fortunes of the once diminishing goldfinch. Feeding niger seed is the most effective way of attracting this most colourful of residents, and it is also popular with other species such as greenfinch, siskins, and dunnocks. Niger seed is recommended for all year round feeding, with regular amounts for those wishing to retain their precious goldfinches, for once supplies stop, they will look somewhere else.

Peanuts

These are rich in fat and are popular with tits, greenfinches, house sparrows, nuthatches, great spotted woodpeckers and siskins. Crushed or grated nuts attract robins, dunnocks and even wrens. Nuthatches and coal tits may hoard peanuts. They provide excellent all year round high energy, protein and oils, which are so necessary in the busy spring and summer month - and absolutely essential in the winter. As fledglings receiving food from a parent can only manage smaller pieces, it is most important that peanuts are only offered from a wire-mesh peanut feeder - particularly during the breeding season. Peanuts can be high in a natural toxin called aflatoxin, so buy buy good quality peanuts from a reputable source and avoid any that show any signs of mould. Keep you peanuts in a cool and dry environment and buy them in small quantities, so that they do not sit around for too long. Salted or dry roasted peanuts should not be used.

Fat Balls and Food Bars

Fat balls and other 'fat-based' food bars are an extremely popular high-energy food source for wild birds, and are especially beneficial in the winter and during colder spells. If they are sold in nylon mesh bags, always remove the bag before putting the fat ball out - the soft mesh can trap and injure birds. You can also make your own bird cake by pouring melted fat (suet or lard) onto a mixture of ingredients such as seeds, nuts, dried fruit, oatmeal, cheese and cake. Use about one-third fat to two-thirds mixture. Stir well in a bowl and allow it to set in a container of your choice. An empty coconut shell, plastic cup or tit bell makes an ideal bird cake 'feeder'. Alternatively, you can turn it out onto your bird table when solid.

Mealworms

Mealworms are not worms but the larval stage of a beetle and are a natural food and can be used to feed birds throughout the year. They are the larvae of the Yellow Mealworm Tenebrio molitor that are used widely as food for wild birds, as well as captive birds, reptiles and amphibians. Another less common but similar species, the Dark Mealworm Tenebrio obscura is sometimes used, the larva being somewhat smaller in size. Mealworms are relished by robins and blue tits, and may attract other insect-eating birds such as pied wagtails. It is very important that any mealworms fed to birds are fresh (either live or dried). Any discoloured ones must not be used as they can cause problems such as salmonella poisoning.

What to Avoid...

Cooking Fat

Fat from cooking is bad for birds. The problem with cooked fat from roasting tins and dishes is that the meat juices have blended with the fat and when allowed to set, this consistency makes it prone to smearing, not good for birds' feathers. Cooking fat is also a breeding ground for bacteria - so potentially bad for birds' health. Salt levels depend on what meat is used and if any salt is added during cooking. Lard and beef suet on their own are fine as they re-solidify after warming and as they are pure fat, it is not as suitable for bacteria to breed on.

Polyunsaturated Margarines or Vegetable Oils

These are unsuitable for birds. Unlike humans, birds need high levels of saturated fat, such as raw suet and lard. They require a high energy content to keep them warm in the worst of the winter weather - since their body reserves are quickly used up, particularly on cold winter nights. Polyunsaturated margarines or vegetable oils are soft fats which can easily be smeared onto the feathers, destroying their waterproofing and insulating qualities.

Dry Dog and Cat Food

Dry dog or cat biscuits are not recommended as birds may choke on the hard lumps. It is sometimes added to cheaper seed mixtures for bulk. Soaked dog or cat biscuits are fine, except in hot weather as they quickly dry out. Meaty tinned dog and cat food form an acceptable substitute to earthworms during the warm, dry part of the summer when worms are beyond the birds' reach. Blackbirds readily take dog food, and even feed it to their chicks. The drawbacks are that pet foods can attract larger birds such as magpies and gulls, and also predators such as neighbourhood cats. If this is likely to be a problem, it is best avoided.

Milk and Desiccated Coconut

Never give milk to any bird. A bird's gut is not designed to digest milk and it can result in serious stomach upsets, or even death. Birds can, however, digest fermented dairy products such as cheese. Mild grated cheese can be a good way of attracting robins, wrens and dunnocks. Give fresh coconut only, in the shell. Rinse out any residues of the sweet coconut water from the middle of the coconut before hanging it out to prevent the build-up of black mildew. Desiccated coconut should never be used as it may swell once inside a bird and cause death.

Mouldy and Stale Food

Many moulds are harmless, but some that can cause respiratory infections in birds, and so it is best to be cautious and avoid mouldy food entirely. If food turns mouldy or stale on your bird table, you are probably placing out too large a quantity for the birds to eat in one day. Always remove any stale or mouldy food promptly. Stale food provides a breeding ground for salmonella bacteria, which can cause food poisoning. At least one type of salmonella causes death among such species as greenfinches and house sparrows. Large quantities of food scattered on the ground may also attract rats and mice.

How to help wildlife though the winter months

For many in the UK, feeding garden wildlife has become a regular habit with the nation spending an estimated £200 million every year caring for just the birds. But what should be on the menu?
While gardens can naturally provide an abundance of fruits, seeds and insects, offering tit-bits means nature lovers can provide a nutritional boost during stressful times as well as enjoy watching wildlife from their window.
Although it's important to remember that the food you provide is only a supplement - and there are consequences to attracting wildlife to your garden - a few snacks could make a big difference in extreme weather or help to feed demanding young.

 

Our gardens can attract a rich variety of birds and Tim Harrison, from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), advises a mixed menu to reflect different visitors' tastes.
As part of the team behind the charity's year-round Garden Birdwatch survey, Mr Harrison is very familiar with seasonal trends and says you should consider changing what you provide through the year.
"Basically, the thing you need to think about when providing different food for birds in your garden is that the reason why there are all these different species is because they all have slightly different requirements and they all have slightly different niches," explains Mr Harrison.
"They all feed in slightly different ways and by doing that it means they're not in direct competition with each other."
So certain species prefer hanging feeders while others enjoy their feasts on the floor. Likewise, different sizes of food suit different beaks, with tiny finches preferring fine seed while the thrush family favour fat worms.
There are a few things to avoid, particularly cooked oats which can dry and solidify around beaks, sugary treats which can negatively effect diets, and loose whole peanuts that can potentially choke chicks if fed whole by unwitting parents.
You should also pay some attention to where you provide food so you don't make it too easy for predators to pick off your visitors - positioning your feeding station near trees or bushes allows the animals to seek cover once they have some food.

TIP - Don't forget the water!

• Make sure there is fresh water available year-round for birds that need a bath and a beverage
• Break the ice on a frozen bird bath - a light plastic ball can help to keep the surface from freezing by moving around in the wind
• In hot weather you can also pour some water in a shady spot at dusk to encourage worms to the surface for blackbirds and badgers alike

Attracting Winter Birds and Bird Feeding

In this article we discuss the different methods for attracting and keeping birds around during the winter months.
The three main things one needs to provide to keep birds during the winter are food, shelter and water. But why feed birds during the winter? Winter brings a change in the availability of natural food. Insects become dormant and are unavailable to most bird species. While woodpeckers, nuthatches, and other insect eaters can pry grubs and hibernating beetles from under tree bark, some others are more dependent on the availability of seeds, fruits and nuts, such as finches. Most birds supplement the natural foods that are available by visiting bird feeders for seeds and suet. This is especially true when a storm hits and their natural food becomes buried beneath the snow. As well, the days are becoming shorter and this reduces the amount of available time that the birds can forage for food, severely limiting the overall food intake per day.
There have been many questions presented on the effects of winter bird feeding: “Will the presence of artificial feeding stations disrupt the migratory urge of some birds leaving them victims of the cold weather they cannot handle?” Although this is a complex question and answer, most available data suggest that the effects have not been harmful, but have had the opposite effect. If a bird is not well enough to have migrated south (possibly due to an injury or some natural migratory cue not being right) and is caught in a sudden snowfall or storm, the bird could probably survive at a feeding station and make it through the winter. This has resulted in unusual overwintering of some species of warblers that have survived at suet feeders. Since the early 1980's there has been an increase in wildlife awareness, causing more people to erect winter bird feeders. As a direct result several species that were on their northernmost distribution could overwinter successfully. Many studies have shown that several species of birds have extended their ranges northwards owing to the availability of feeding stations.
Feeding birds during the winter is a great responsibility, and I want to stress that the birds will become dependent on you as a food source, occasionally at the expense of feeding elsewhere. As a result, one should not stop feeding during the winter months, from October through the end of April to early May, with late winter, from February on, being the most difficult period for the birds. It is also important that one fills the feeder in the morning so that the birds have sufficient time to feed during the shortened days. If you were the only person providing food to birds during those months and that food source disappeared, many birds could perish from starvation if they were not able to find a suitable food source quickly, which can often be difficult during severe winter storms. While this is my personal view and that of many others, there have been recent studies that suggest that stopping food during the winter is not detrimental to the birds. The survival rate of sunflower seed fed birds was twice that of birds that obtained all their food from the wild. While species like finches and sparrows, which do not cache any food, have no reserve food supply to help them if food abundance drops or if there is bad weather for a couple of days.

Providing Shelter

One error that I have found people making is placing a bird feeder in their grassy oasis of a backyard. The foremost thing one needs to keep birds coming back to your garden is providing a place to perch and hide from predators and from bad weather. Without providing a few trees or shrubs in your yard near your feeder, one probably cannot keep the birds coming back. Evergreens are crucial to many birds in winter because they shield them from harsh winter winds, subzero temperatures, falling snow and freezing rain. They also provide protection against predators, like cats that might patrol the feeders. You could remember to discard your used Christmas tree into your backyard and the birds can use it as an extra hiding spot and shelter. Or collect the neighbourhood’s trees to provide more available cover. One could tie them to fence posts or set them in their traditional tree stands. The Christmas trees will be most effective if they are placed close to the feeders, and the trees will remain green right through the winter.
Cover, where birds can quickly flit into to hide from predators or use just for a resting place, can be in the form of deciduous trees or bushes, tall grasses, or a brush pile of discard twigs and branches. The latter is useful if one does not have sufficient cover nearby and wants to provide some quick hiding and perching spots.
Shelter can also be in the form of nest boxes, or special roosting boxes. Nest boxes used for breeding during the summer often get used as seed caches and for night time roosting sites.

Providing Water

While water is the least important of the three things I am discussing it can make a difference to the number of birds visiting your feeders. While we often think birds do not need open water once the snow has fallen, this is really not true. First, there is often a critical transitory period when there is no snow on the ground, yet all the puddles and small streams have frozen over from the cold. What do the birds do then? They must fly to a large open water source, like a river or lake, but this can be quite a distance from your feeder and the birds might decide to stay with a feeder that is closer to the water. Secondly, snow is extremely cold and we all know how much snow we have to melt to get a cup of water. With birds, eating cold snow requires, and takes away, energy through the melting process. This is a big waste of energy when the birds are trying to stay warm in frigid conditions.
The easiest way to provide water is by maintaining your bird bath year round. This might mean filling the bath several times a day, which may not be practical for most people who work all day. The best method is to have a heated bird bath. Although a bird bath heater can be quite costly initially, they quickly redeem their cost when you have a line up of birds waiting for a drink because there is not enough room around the bath. Heaters are completely safe, but one should make sure they have automatic shut off, or heat cycling on/off, features should the bath go dry (this might happen on windy days when evaporation rates are higher or if there are too many birds drinking from the bath). The plugs must be attached to a grounded (three pronged) outlet to prevent the possibility of electrocution. One concern with heaters is that some come with the heating element uncovered. Even if yours has the element covered with a protective screen I would suggest using a piece of shale overtop the heating element that will prevent any birds from accidentally burning their feet. The birds will perch on this warm rock, especially the Mourning Doves.

Feeding Stations

When choosing and sighting your feeders, it is the welfare of the birds that should be foremost in your planning and not your viewing enjoyment. There are many types of feeders and it is a good idea to use several types in your yard, and have a squirrel guard on the pole.
The most basic feeder is the ground itself. Many birds, such as juncos and grouse, prefer ground feeding. However, throwing seeds on the ground can be wasteful as they will get buried under snow. Seed could be placed under evergreens sheltered from snow, or you could just let the birds on the feeders scatter the seed onto the ground. A note of caution, seeds on the ground not only attract squirrels but the feeding birds attract the neighborhood cats as well.
Some people make their own feeders out of meticulously cleaned bleach bottles, milk cartons or from any number of fluid jugs, such as those that hold ‘spring water’ or windshield washer. But make sure you carefully clean out all residues if you use anything that might have a toxic residue. Plastic soft drink bottles can be used. Such feeders are not only cheap, they are useful as satellite feeders to try out new types of seeds.
Pole feeders, preferably with a squirrel baffle, are the easiest to install. The poles come in sections — with the bottom section hammered into the ground. To the top of the pole can be attached a platform or other type of hopper feeder, or other finger poles can be attached and feeders hung from them. The feeder must be at least 1.5 m (5 feet) above ground, preferably more, to prevent squirrels from jumping up onto it. The pole should also be at least 2½ m (8 feet) from any jumping surface, like tree, fence, building or deck, as these can provide jumping sites for the squirrels who think nothing of an 8-foot jump.
Other types of feeders include window shelves or feeders, and hanging feeders that can be attached to the soffit of your house or to a tree branch or pole. The advantage of the hanging feeders is that they can act as supplements to your platform feeder and, more important, each can be used to hold a specific food to attract specific species (see section 2 on foods). In this way, a species, such as goldfinch, can have its own feeding stations. Tube feeders are excellent for holding niger seed for finches. Hanging feeders with two or more compartments are also available, so that a mixture of seed types can be offered in the same unit, attracting different species to the same feeder.
There are also counter-weighted hopper feeders for those who are having trouble with squirrels. These feeders are weighted and lightweight birds do nothing, but a heavy squirrel will cause a door to come down over the feeding ports, preventing them from cleaning out all of the seed. Some feeders are designed to look like log cabins, country stores, and so on. To the birds, these designs do not mean anything, so pick your feeder for its utility, not its cuteness.
If your newly erected feeders are not used immediately, do not be dismayed. If the birds are not in the habit of visiting your yard, it may take them a few days to discover them. The birds will be the best advertisers for your feeders. Once one bird has discovered a feeder, others are sure to follow. The more species using your feeder, the more species they will attract. How long they stick around will depend on how well you have sited the feeder, types of seeds you have chosen, and if there is sufficient cover nearby.
One important note. Feeders and the ground must be cleaned regularly.
Droppings can accumulate and contaminate the food and feeders. Birds could then be more prone to disease transmission. As well, wet food is not eaten by birds. Food that has become wet in rain storms, or a thaw period, begins to decompose. This not only clogs your feeders, and makes it look like no one is eating the seeds, but could kill the birds. Moldy, rancid food could be eaten by birds, who do not have a good sense of smell, and die of food poisoning. In the spring, or when a warm period occurs during the winter, please rake up all the seeds and hulls and place them in a secure area, preferably the compost bin, where birds cannot get access to it.

Foods to Feed

While there are many books on feeding birds in winter I will go over a few basics. Depending on the types of birds you would like to attract you can buy your main seeds in bulk, preferably from a feed store like Kennedy Wild Bird Food since they tend to give the best prices. I would suggest, that one buys from a selection of black-oil sunflower, niger seeds, whole peanuts, and suet. These can then be placed out in whatever quantities that the birds will eat in one day.

Sunflower Hearts

This is the most favoured of all the seeds, and if one only wants to feed one type of seed this should be it. It can be easily dispensed in any hanging feeder, on the ground or on a platform feeder.
There has been much discussion over the difference between striped and black-oil sunflower seeds and their benefits/disadvantages to birds. Through my experience it is more of the advantage to you, the consumer, than for the birds. Both sunflowers offer similar food value. Black-oil is a small sunflower that is easily opened by all birds due to its thinner hull (especially true for chicks, nuthatches and finches). This also makes the black-oil’s hull biodegrade and compost more easily than the thicker hulled striped sunflower. My greatest reasoning for buying black-oil over striped is the number of seeds you get in a bag. Striped sunflowers, with their thicker hull, are thus heavier than the softer-shelled black-oil. This results in the number of seeds by weight difference to be quite large between the two. Therefore, you will probably be getting more than twice the seed per weight with black-oil. This adds up to more seeds per bird per your unit of cost. Crack open a striped and a black-oil and you will see that the seed is about the same size, but it is the shell that makes the difference.

Niger Seeds

This is the most expensive seed we can buy for the birds, ranging from. Due to its high cost, it is usually only placed out for finches in specially designed niger feeders. These feeders have small, narrow holes where the seeds can only be extracted by fine billed birds.

Peanuts & Other Nuts

Nuts are the highest in nutrition, with lots of calories per weight, but are quite expensive. While I do know people that feed walnuts and pecans to birds and squirrels, most of us settle for the cheaper peanuts. You must crack open a couple of peanuts until the birds try them. Then they will be hooked and will come back regularly. I put my peanuts out at sunrise and the birds are always waiting. Within ½ hour they have cached and eaten all of them.
Shelled, crushed, peanuts are much more expensive than whole. I normally place these into bubble feeders (feeder with upside down feeding holes that prevents perching birds like House Finches from getting seeds) where chicks and nuthatches are normally only able to feed, mainly when we are in the most severe weather and when late winter has set in. Shelled peanuts can be provided in special peanut feeders.

Suet & Fat Balls

During the winter, birds need high caloric foods. Suet (beef or pork fat) is one of the best calorie providers. Suet cakes can be placed out year round. These are quite expensive, so buy them in bulk when they go on sale. There are many kinds on the market these days, but I have found that most birds prefer either the plain or peanut kind. Or you can make your own suet. If you go to any butcher where they cut their own meat, you can get free, or for a nominal price, beef or pork fat. The raw suet can be placed in onion bags, suet feeders, log feeders (or peanut butter) or hammered onto a piece of wood tied to the side of a tree. You can also melt down the suet and combine whatever ingredients you want (seed, honey, peanut butter, corn meal, wheat hearts, etc.) and make your own suet cakes. The one thing you have to be careful with providing pure fat, is that in warm weather (warm spells and when spring arrives) you have to remove the suet. Suet can spoil and the birds, which have no sense of smell, will eat it, get food poisoning and possibly die. I feed pure fat during the coldest months and then switch to the commercial stuff when spring gets close.
Whatever you feed your birds this winter, and however you feed them, Kennedy Wild Birds have a massive range of seeds, buts, live feed, feeders and baths in stock today - pop into our shop in Deeping St James or buy online at www.wildbirdfood.uk.com.

'Early birds' find worms for dinner - BBC Nature

We've just spotted this really interesting article about the feeding habits of wild birds on the BBC website and thought it would be good to share with you ...

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Birds, such as great and blue tits, search for food in the morning but only return to eat it in late afternoon, scientists have found. The team believe the behaviour maximises their chances of avoiding predators during the day without starving to death overnight. Researchers from the University of Oxford tracked the birds' winter foraging movements using tiny tags.

All five of the studied species of songbirds behaved in the same way. The results are published in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.

"Our results are important because they provide a new hypothesis for how animals forage," said Damien Farine, lead author from the University of Oxford.

"They suggest that animals integrate the different risks they face into one strategy that can be applied to satisfy both their need to avoid predation and avoid risk."

Scientists have been studying bird populations at Wytham Woods, Oxfordshire, UK since 1947. Finding food becomes more and more relevant towards the end of the winter when large sources of food, such as beech mast, have become depleted. The team knew from previous studies that, when the predation risk appears high, birds delay putting on fat until late in the day.

"In the 1970s, when there were almost no sparrowhawks, tits used to be much fatter [in winter], which helped them avoid the risk of starvation.

"When sparrowhawks returned [in greater numbers], the average body weight of great tits, for example, decreased," Mr Farine told BBC Nature.

According to Mr Farine these birds had shifted from a strategy of being fat, to a strategy where they delayed putting on fat until late in the day.

... please follow this link to read the full article ...

Kennedy Wild Bird Foods has a wide range of food, seeds & nuts for domestic and wild birds as well as  cat and dog food.

Bird Watching for Beginners

A lot of birders have their first eye-opening experience with the avian world in their own back gardens - and usually from a young age. It could have been a robin nibbling on the berries on a frosty morning, a nuthatch visiting the feeder or a beautiful goldfinch singing on a warm Spring day. Whatever the species was, it opened the door to a wonderful world of wild birds. Most of us found soon after that while getting a handle on "garden" birds was pretty easy, the birds encountered further afield are another story.

Many are unfamiliar, only offer fleeting glimpses, or identification is elusive because they look just too much like several other species. When you are just starting out with birdwatching, identifying all of the birds you come across can seem to be overwhelming. However, before you decide to limit your birding to the confines of your garden, keep in mind that even seasoned experts run into birds that they can’t put a name to. Some birds will be a mystery but with practice, you should learn to identify most of the birds you see.

For better bird identification, try these suggestions:

• Study the field guide: Don’t just flip through your trusty field guide, take time to study it on a regular basis. Try learning how to recognize different bird families first before focusing on the species. This provides the framework needed for easier identification and makes it easier to learn about the differences between similar groups like hawks and falcons or ducks and grebes. Once you have a good handle on the bird families in your region, then you can start studying the species in each of those families.

• Field marks: This refers to the diagnostic characters that help identify birds at the species level. Instead of memorizing every tiny aspect of each species, just focus on learning the field marks to start. This saves time and greatly simplifies bird identification.

• Practice in the field: Whether watching birds in the garden or looking at waterfowl at a local reserve, see if you can place the species you see in their respective families and look for the field marks pointed out in the book. If you know which family an unfamiliar bird belongs to, identifying it may just be a question of matching it to a species in the field guide. Practicing also means learning how to use your binoculars better and learning how to look for field marks like eyerings, wing bars, and other common features.

• Take notes and make sketches: These practices might be the best way to learn how to identify birds because you are forced to truly study the birds you see. Start by writing down notes that detail what you see on the bird. For example, if you begin with the head of the bird, write about the shape of its bill, markings around the eye and on the face, the colors shown by the plumage, and so on for the back, wings, tail, and underparts. Next, try drawing a picture of the bird you see and attempt to copy its shape and the field marks that stand out. It might seem like a painstaking process but you will learn a lot about field identification!

What has been helpful to you in learning how to identify birds? Please share your stories in the comments of this blog or on our social media feeds - http://www.facebook.com/wildbirdfoods or http://www.twitter.com/wildbirdfoods