| There is
nothing like a
light dust of snow or a fresh coat of freezing
rain to bring wild birds to backyard feeders. Brimming with morsels
to delight avian epicure, feeders stuffed with
fat sunflower seeds, both stripped and solid
black, draw Chickadees and their kin while fat
chunks of white suet lure big woodpeckers from
the deep woods.
While snow
cover isn't all that good for the birds, it sure
is great for birders, and there's no better time
to learn about your feathered little seed
snappers than when you can see them so close.
Seeing a wide
variety of species out the window isn't all that
hard to do in this part of Indiana, but different
species like different foods and feed in
different ways. So, if you want to get many
different birding opportunities, you need to feed
to those varying tastes and habits.
 Here are a few feeder tips that will help:
- Tube feeders are great for
smaller birds, and while birds as large
as grackles may camp on the kind with
bases, the straight tube type feeder
restricts use to the little
ones--finches, chickadees, tufted
titmice, nuthatches and some sparrows.
Tube feeders hang from trees or from
under house eaves
- Finch feeders are tube
feeders with modifications for loading
and feeding thistle seed, mainly in the
form a tiny slits instead of large access
holes. Thistle seed is tiny and
expensive, and it is the favorite food of
the American goldfinch. Other birds will
also eat thistle, but if there are any
goldfinches in your area, they will make
repeated visits once they discover your
feeder.
- Platform feeders are most
frequently used feeders, and they can
range anywhere from the top of an old
stump to a large, elevated feeding
condominium with roof, perches, windows
and feeding holes. Nearly every bird will
come to a feeding platform, and large
ones encourage bigger birds like blue
jays. Red-bellied, hairy and downy
woodpeckers will all come to platform
feeders, although suet is more tempting
to the downy and hairy varieties.
Pileated woodpeckers are also common suet
feeder visitors.
- Ground feeding happens in
the natural course of events around the
base of all feeders. If you watch
chickadees, you know how many seeds they
discard before selecting the one
sunflower seed that "feels"
right to them. They mine millet like
badgers dig into soft earth, and all
those seeds end up on the ground.
Cardinals, juncos, sparrows, towhees and
doves all feed on the ground but may also
frequent feeders. Some of these birds
prefer the millet the chickadees discard,
so make sure you don't feed
"straight" sunflower all
winter.
The bird feed mix you buy at the store contains mostly
milletsunflower and cracked corn makes a superior feed
that with sunflower. Adding more will attract every bird
in your area. 
- Suet feeding requires
different approaches to bird feeding,
because there are all kinds of mammals
out there that like beef fat. A
determined raccoon will raid suet every
night, but at least there are no bears in
the area to wreak havoc on feeding
stations. Suet feeders are usually stout
wire mesh cages with secure lids. The
mesh has to be big enough to let the
birds get at it and small enough to deter
outright chomping by coons.
Lots of people make suet balls this time
of year. There are all kinds of recipes
for suet balls, but the process generally
involves melting fat and mixing in seeds
or whatever other little bird taste treat
you can find (say a bag of maggots), then
pouring the concoction into a mold or
forming by hand. Put a wire hanger into
the mold, or form the ball around one.
Outside in cold weather, these things
draw all kinds of birds. Chickadees and
tufted titmice love them.
- Squirrel feeding is part
of bird feeding in this part of the
country, no matter whether you want to
feed squirrels or not. The native
"fox" and gray squirrels are
the most diabolical bird feeder raiders
known to bird or human. Sure, they're not
as strong as black bear that simply rips
the feeder off its post, but then, they
don't have to do that.
Squirrels ramble across telephone and
power lines as if they were highways, and
a determined squirrel can span ten feet
in a flying leap from house or tree.
To deter a determined squirrel requires
placing your feeder on a metal pole with
squirrel deflector below the feeder. You
must place the entire device well away
from any trees or buildings that offer a
leaping point for rodent raiders. More
recently, I have heard that spraying a
hot pepper concoction on your bird seed
will deter squirrels but not the birds.
Birds apparently do not feel hot pepper
spray.
There is very little else you can do to
really deter squirrels, so most bird
feeding folk accept these wily rodents at
platform feeders. Tube feeders are just a
leap away for a squirrel, and they just
love to stuff their cheeks with those big
sunflower seeds with the white stripe.
If you're going to feed squirrels anyway,
you might as well try a hanging corn cob
device that turns squirrels into
toe-hanging acrobats. The device is a
chain with an eye bolt on one end and a
hook for hanging on a tree limb on the
other. Screw the eye bolt into the end of
the corn cob, hang it up and watch them
go for the corn, upside down.
Some people make elaborate obstacle courses for squirrels,
including swinging rope approaches, tunnels, slides and
ladders. It's amazing what a squirrel will do for a sunflower
seed. 
- When you place your
feeders, arrange them at various
distances from your window. Big suet
feeders that will attract shy pileated
woodpeckers should be far enough away
that your movements inside won't flush
them from the feeding station. Other than
that, most of the other birds will come
right to your window to eat after they
get used to being there. Chickadees,
titmice, nuthatches and the red and
purple finches are all pretty bold, so
put a small bird feeder up close. Get a
Peterson Field Guide and a pair of
binoculars, and you'll be ready for the
winter show. 12/1/96.
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