Eirpet Wild Bird Food (2.5 kg), €5.60
Seed Feeders.
The best seed dispensers are clear polycarbonate tubes with varying numbers of portholes at intervals down the side. Ensure there is a protective lip at each hole to prevent seed spilling out, and rain spoiling the food inside. A short perch makes it easy for the finches to reach the seed easily.
Most seed feeders have a metal loop or handle so that they can be hung from the bird table or the branches of a tree.
Alternatively, you can buy ones that can be fixed to a window with sucker cups.
Birds Tables.
Bird tables can be used for seed and scraps from the kitchen.
Nest Boxes.
Nest boxes can be a wonderful asset to your garden. They will attract birds to nest and give you hours of enjoyment watching the birds develop their families. They are most successful in large gardens.
Fat Dispensers.
Most fat balls come in nets to hang from trees. You can obtain wire cages to hold fat balls, also available are coconut shells with fat inside and pottery bells filled with fat.
Water Containers.
It is important for you to provide a reliable source of clean water for the welfare of your garden birds. The dry nature of seeds means that finches, sparrows and doves need to drink at regular intervals and many species need to bathe regularly to keep their feathers in tip-top condition.
Seed for wild birds.
Feeding wild birds will increase the number of species that visit your garden. This will greatly improved their chances of survival during the winter. It will also help them through the difficult breeding season.
Many of our wild birds now look on our gardens as a safe place of refuge. The necessary development of intensive farming in the countryside, has put pressure on many of our native birds. Not only are the number of singing Sky Larks and colourful Yellow Hammers declining but even among common garden birds like the Starling and Song Thrushes there is a notable decrease.
Feeling All Year Round?
It is now recommended to feed wild birds all year round. It is especially important to feed them from November through to July. Many of us appreciate the hardships for birds of the winter months. But spring and summer can also be an equally difficult time during breeding. There is a shortage of seed during the planting season. The young birds some from as early as March put pressure on the breeding pair to provide food. The number of young all species puts further demands on the supply chain.
It is important that you continue to supply throughout the year. With their own food supplies secure, the adults can forage for caterpillars, grubs and insects to feed their young.
Feeding Seed.
Seed can be fed in a number of ways. It can be fed loose on the ground or on a bird table It can also be fed from a seed feeder. Different birds are attracted to different ways of feeding. Blackbirds, Robins, Starlings and Thrushes like to feed off the ground. Tits and Finches like to eat from a feeder. Try both and see the different varieties of birds you can attract.
Always make sure there is a plentiful supply of clean water for drinking and bathing. Always place food where the birds will be safe from predators such as cats. Many birds are lost each year to these predators.
