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A bird that can’t find enough calories on a cold winter day, or fails to find a sheltered dry spot for the night, may not be alive the next morning. |
Attracting snow birds
Watching little chickadees busily snatch seeds from feeders, or gorgeous cardinals gather at a birdbath at dusk, it’s easy to forget that these birds are engaged in a life and death struggle with the elements.
Winter is a major source of stress for birds. Nature delivers a double whammy in the coldest season. Birds need to consume more calories to stay warm during the day to survive the long, cold nights, but shorter days cut into their foraging time. A chickadee, for example, works 20 times harder in winter to find food than in the spring.
A bird that can’t find enough calories on a cold winter day, or fails to find a sheltered dry spot for the night, may not be alive the next morning. If they can’t find open water, birds can eat snow as a last resort but this cools them down internally, a cost to their energy budget.
Winter is tough on wild birds, which is why so many migrate. Those that remain to face winter’s blasts could use a helping hand, especially on extremely cold days or after ice storms cover every last bit of food in the environment.
Water is key
In dry areas and cold regions, water is always in short supply. Birds desperately need water for drinking and to maintain their feathers. Except on the coldest days, birds will bathe to keep feathers in optimal condition for weatherproofing and warmth. Remember that a backyard that provides a reliable source of water will attract at least three times as many birds as one that only offers feeders.
High-energy foods
Winter is no time to worry about waistlines when you’re a bird. Birds need high-energy food and a lot of it. Suet is popular with woodpeckers, chickadees, nuthatches, titmice and most other birds out in the cold. Birds aren’t fussy. They’ll flock to the big lumps of white fat from the meat counter or pressed suet cakes from the bird store.
Black oil sunflower seeds are the all-around favorite for most winter birds. Most beaks can open the soft shells for a high-energy treat inside. Woodpeckers and jays are fiends for shelled peanuts, and ground feeders, such as sparrows, mourning doves and cardinals, appreciate seed or cracked corn scattered on the ground.
Give them shelter
Some birds, including bluebirds, chickadees, nuthatches and woodpeckers, seek out tree cavities or birdhouses for shelter. Roost boxes offer excellent protection from the elements, as well. Constructed with the entrance hole near the bottom to retain heat and with staggered perches inside, birds share their body heat with neighbors. Some birds, including chickadees, wrens, bluebirds, finches and house sparrows, will even use last summer’s bird nests for shelter at night. Sturdily constructed oriole nests are popular, as are old swallow nests.
Building a brush pile is a fun and easy way to provide shelter for birds. They’ll dash into a mound of twigs and branches many times during the day to warm up and to escape predators. Some birds will spend the night in the interior, increasing their chances for survival. Brush piles can be formally constructed with staggered layers of branches and twigs or they can be haphazard piles tossed together as branches fall or are pruned. Birds aren’t fussy; they just need a place that stops the wind.
Planting evergreen trees and shrubs on your property is a great way to offer shelter for a host of birds. They’ll huddle on the branches during the day to escape winter winds and sleep at night near trunks warmed by daytime sun.
Squirrel control
Another way to help backyard birds in winter is by keeping squirrels at bay. Squirrels will ruin some feeders and drive birds from others with repeated jumps and lunges. The best ways to thwart squirrels is to hang bird feeders high, with squirrel guards, and set out squirrel food a good distance from bird feeders. A 5-gallon plastic bucket turned on its side and filled each day with a quart of corn kernels, should keep the furry rodents busy. — Val Cunningham