Wildlife Viewing - In Your Own Backyard - Five Ways to Double the Bird Species at Your Feeders

In Your Backyard

Eight Ways to Double the Bird Species at Your Feeders

1. Feed birds in all four seasons. Use a combination of fruit-producing native plants and feeders.

2. Provide water in all seasons-dripping or misting in summer and warmed in the winter for areas that are subjected to freezing.

3. Use 8 to 12 feeders, placed in 2 or 3 clusters.

4. Provide protection from predators by placing feeders in the open (10-foot radius), or by encircling them with 30-inch-high mesh.

5. Clean feeders and ground areas regularly.

6. Keep your cat indoors and dogs restrained or away from feeders.

7. Provide a brush pile in the corner of your yard. Beetles and insects are attracted to the decaying wood and refuse, which provide another protein source for birds.

8. Plant native grasses and or a wildflower field. Pollinators will provide another food source for sparrows, swallows or bluebirds.