Should I Feed The Little Birdies ?

[Gromit]

I was recently given a bird feeder, and enjoy watching them come and feed from it. They are eating a lot, and I have started to wonder if I shouldn’t be feeding them now. I can see the sense in feeding them in winter when conditions are bad, and it spring when they have their young. But feeding them now might be making them lazy. They should be finding their own food now it is plentiful.

Should I stop replenishing the feeder, and resume later in the year ?

[Barmaid]

Lots of schools of thought on this. We feed all year round. Most important is a plentiful supply of water.

[iluvmargie]

I feed all year round and when you think about it, at this time of year they need all the help they can get when trying to keep a nest of young going. I have a male blackbird that comes, eats some food and then flies f with a beak full of food, I think he's feeding his mate sat on the nest.

[iluvmargie]

Agree about the water too, I always leave fresh water out for them as well.

[hellywelly4]

I feed them all the year round. The blue tits in my bird box used the feeders a lot this year and I always get lots of goldfinches on them. I would say feed as much as you can, it's not doing any harm.

[Gromit]

Thank you all.
I am still worried it might be harmful, and they are not feeding as they naturally would if it wasn’t handed to them on a plate.

[ladybirder]

No do not stop replenishing your feeder Gromit especially this time of year. Perhaps in August, when the later breeding birds' young have fledged, you could reduce the the daily amount you put out, as in summer and early autumn lots of them do go out in the countryside to eat. Unfortunately our countryside gets built on or has its hedgerows and verges cut down. Insects are not plentiful nowadays either. I'm sure you've noticed that the front grill of your car no longer gets plastered with them in the summer as used to happen. That's if you're old enough to remember Gromit? It's great feeding the birds they give so much joy.

[iluvmargie]

Before your post at 15:06 Gromit, three of us told you how we feed all year round, I for one, would NEVER do anything that is 'harmful' to the wild birds and I have been feeding them for many, many years. I have also been rewarded with the sight of many different species over the years, which is a huge delight.

Why ask if you are not going to listen?

[ladybirder]

Plus advice from birding organisations is to continue feeding all year round. The olden days it ain't when there was always plenty of natural food about.

[novalis]

I feed them all year round. Unfortunately I am fast running out of food and my usual supplier is still closed.

[ladybirder]

Novalis I'm having to search for a supplier who has what I need for the birds and hedgehogs I feed. No live mealworms at the moment but they should arrive tomorrow. Last fat square is not going to last much longer either and again my supplier is having a job getting more and I'm now out of sunflower hearts as well. So all I'm able to put out at the moment is uncooked porage oats which the blackbirds are loving. I googled and found what I wanted elsewhere and should be stocked up again this week. It's because the manufacturers haven't been manufacturing that's the cause of the problem as I'm sure you know.

[sherrardk]

Ladybirder, I feed my hedgehogs spike’s hedgehog food from Amazon (you shouldn’t give them meal worms even though they love them).

[ladybirder]

Sherr the live mealworms are for the birds, not the hedgehogs. It's OK to feed a few, occasionally, to the hogs but not on a regular basis. I feed them Spikes semi moist Hedgehog food with bits of sliced strawberries and banana on top. Oh and sometimes a few cut up sliced green beans. So I think we are both singing from the same hymn sheet;-))
I wish Gromit would come back to this thread.

[Gromit]

I am reading contradictory advice from the experts. The bird feed suppliers all naturally say keep on feeding.

Most birds don't need your help in the summer. When they are nesting and rearing their young, many birds focus on eating insects, so feeding is less necessary at those times.

https://www.humanesociety.org/resources/feeding-your-backyard-birds


During the summer months, birds require high protein foods, especially while they are moulting. Only feed selected foods at this time of year. Good hygiene is vital, or feeding may do more harm than good.

https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/advice/how-you-can-help-birds/feeding-birds/when-to-feed-garden-birds/

iluvmargie,
I didn’t mean to ignore your advice (and I haven’t). I just wanted to do the best thing. My house is a urban setting, and there aren’t may trees about. But this year they have nested in a bush in my garden. Which is why a friend bought a feeder. Different people have since told me not to feed in summer, so I was wondering what you folks thought.
I have been putting water out, and now pigeons are coming. The experts worry about diseases from species mixing.

[Chipchopper]

Personally, I'm in the all year round school of thought, I believe the birds ain't silly, they know what food they need to give their chicks. Example, for the past couple of weeks it all went quiet when there was plenty of natural food around, caterpillars and worms etc. Its only the last few days that the birds have returned to the feeders and they're bringing the young with them and showing them the ropes.
Enjoy watching them Gromit, I'm sure it won't make them lazy.

[jno]

I haven't found birds depending on my bounty; they're quite happy to go looking for worms even when the feeder is full. Some eat there, some don't. More do so in winter.

The only real drawback is that it's in a sort of cage on a pole to deter big birds and squirrels, and it doesn't. The pigeons cling to it and flap their wings to make it swing and drop seed out. The SAS squirrels also cling and swing. I have to give them the hard stare. But I'm happy watching smaller birds have a snack.

I wouldn't leave chips out for seagulls, though.

[jno]

lol, species mixing, always a big concern for some ABers.

[daisypotter]

Yes definitely, I feed them all year round.

[ladybirder]

What a nasty post jno.

[jno]

why wouuld that be, ladybirder?

[ummmm]

What's nasty about it?