THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF
BIRD FEEDERS
Birds are big business. That may come as a
surprise to people who have never given much
thought to the warm-blooded vertebrates who fl y
over their heads every day, but tens of millions of
people have a passion for birds.
A 2016 survey from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife
Service found that more than 45 million people
in the United States watch birds around their
homes and away from home every year. While
statistics aren’t as current in Canada as they are
in the United States, past studies have indicated
birding is wildly popular among Canadians, with
roughly 30 percent going wildlife-viewing while
on out-of-town trips of one or more nights. That
positively affects the economy, contributing
billions of dollars to the tourism industry in both
the U.S. and Canada every year.
While birding trips can help birdwatching
enthusiasts see birds they otherwise may never
see in person, bird feeders can be a great way to
bring more birds into your own backyard. Choice
of bird feeder can affect just which birds come to
your back yard, and the following are some bird
feeder options for birding enthusiasts to consider.
• Window feeders: Small and easily attached to
windows with suction cups, window feeders are
easy to maintain and bring birds right to your
window. Birds that visit window feeders stand in
the seed while feeding, so they must be cleaned
and refi lled on a daily basis.
• Tray or platform feeders: The online birding
resource All About Birds (allaboutbirds.org)
notes that tray feeders attract the widest variety
of seed-eating feeder birds. That makes them
ideal for birding enthusiasts who want to attract
a variety of birds to their properties. Tray feeders
are simply platforms that hold seed and provide a
place for birds to stand while they eat. All About
Birds recommends tray feeders with screened,
rather than solid, bottoms, as these trays promote
complete drainage. Frequent cleaning is necessary
with tray feeders, as bird droppings can quickly
soil seed.
• Hopper or house feeders: These feeders are
enclosed and feed seed out through the bottom.
Hopper feeders are great for people who don’t
want to be bother with daily maintenance, as
they can hold several pounds of food at one
time, greatly reducing the number of times
homeowners will need to refi ll them. In addition,
hopper feeders don’t need to be cleaned as often
as other feeders. However, All About Birds notes
that hopper feeders, which need to be thoroughly
cleaned roughly once per month, are harder to
clean than other feeders.
• Tube feeders: Tube feeders deliver seeds to
birds through screens or ports. Small perches
attract birds to tube feeders, making these ideal
for small birds. Some tube feeders contain
perches designed for birds that can feed upside
down, potentially attracting a greater variety of
birds to your backyard. But All About Birds notes
that seed can collect on bottom-most feeding
ports, providing a breeding ground for mold
and bacteria. As a result, tube feeders should be
inspected and cleaned regularly.
Bird feeders can draw an array of birds to your
backyard.
Pg 14 - 311 East Meadow To Advertise call: 631-698-8400 Town Crier - January 23, 2020