Secrets to Attracting Flocks of Happy Finches to Your Yard

Male Purple Finch (a/k/a Raspberry Finch)

Such energy and color!  I love finches: goldfinches, house finches, purple finches, crossbills, red polls, evening grosbeaks, and pine siskins.  They range from greens, to yellows, to oranges to raspberry red, and they have wonderful liquid songs that uplift the spirit.  You cannot help but be happy when finches are around.

On top of that, they eat a ton of weed seeds!  Their favorite seeds come from the thistle, also purple cone flowers, iron weed, dandelions, asters, cosmos, zinnias, and of course, sunflowers.  Once in a while they will eat a bug, but they are granivorous as a rule.

People so enjoyed their color and lovely songs that purple finches and house finches were once sold as caged birds!   To please either of these finches, plant cherry trees.  House finches in particular have a sweet tooth.  When hummingbirds aren't looking, they will steal some of their nectar! 

American Goldfinches Male and Female, Mourning Doves in the foreground.
by Grandma Pearl

American goldfinches delay raising a family until late summer to coincide with the ripening of the seeds they love.  They feed only seeds to their young, rather than any bugs or protein.  Their song and color is so beautiful that they are known as 'wild canaries'.  In the wintertime, they burrow under the snow for insulation against the cold.

This winter I have had mixed flocks of finches that have numbered in the hundreds!  I know because I participated in the annual Great Backyard Bird Count, as I do every year.  I'm sharing my secrets for finch success so that you may enjoy the colors and music of these awesome little birds.

Goldfinches in their winter plumage, lining the tree branches, waiting their turn at the feeders.
by Grandma Pearl

The Best Feeders for Attracting Colorful Finches:

• Nyjer (Thistle) Tube-style Feeder       
• Sunflower Tube-style Feeder               
• Ground Tray Feeder                                        
• Platform Feeder                                               
• Gazebo-style Feeder                                                     
• Fruit Feeder                                                       
• Basket Feeder   
• Heated Bird Bath or Fountain--Finches are 'heavy drinkers' year round, and need a constant open water supply  to help digest all that plant fiber.  They also love to be clean, and bathe often.    

Male House Finch enjoying a sunflower seed.
by Grandma Pearl

These little finches love to swing as they pluck seeds from this easy-to-make Basket Feeder
by Grandma Pearl

Best Foods for Attracting Finches:

• Nyjer (Thistle) seed
• Black Oil Sunflower seed
• Peanut Hearts
• Suet
• White Proso Millet
• Fruit
• Cracked Corn
• Rock Salt or Salt Block
• Sugar Water (hummingbird nectar)

If you only have room for one or two feeders, or your bird feeding budget is small, choose the tube-style feeders:  one for thistle seed and one for black oil sunflower seed.  You may also wish to add a heavy dish in which to put a few small pieces of apples that have been coated in sugar water.  What a treat for your finches to enjoy when it's cold outside!

A block of salt placed on the ground, or a handful of rock salt scattered under the feeders, will also please your chatty little finches.  You can also toss handfuls of sunflower seed over the snow.  As they forage, they will pick up water from the snow to help with their digestion.

American Goldfinches foraging for sunflower seeds in the snow.
by Grandma Pearl

All birds need a source of grit, or tiny stones that they use in their crops to help grind up their food.  They don't have the stomach acids we do, so that is how their food is broken down for use in their bodies.  You can find a small bag of bird sand or grit at the pet store.  It's an inexpensive way to help out all your birds, especially in the wintertime when snow covers the ground where they would normally find the fine grit they need.

Make sure to keep your tube feeders very clean.  If you should find mold in the seed tubes, dump them out immediately.  Then clean your feeders with a solution of 9 parts of warm water to 1 part of household bleach.  This will kill any bacteria that would otherwise cause harm to your birds.  Make sure the tube feeder is thoroughly dry before refilling and re-hanging.  By the way, a long-handled narrow brush is useful for cleaning tube feeders.

Mold is also a sign that birds are not eating as much seed as you have put out.  Try starting with a smaller amount of seeds in a tube feeder until your finch flock expands as the word gets out around the neighborhood!

Also, don't allow seeds to accumulate under the feeders.  Mold and bacteria from droppings can develop.  Finches love to forage on the ground, and you don't want them to get sick or worse.  I use a leaf vacuum to suck up all those spent bird seeds shells; then I toss them into the garbage.  It isn't wise to use them as compost because sunflower seeds in particular do not get along well with other plants.  In short, they poison them, which can cause some nearby plants to be deformed or die altogether. 

Enjoy your fascinating flocks of finches.  I guarantee they will put a smile on your face!

Grandma Pearl  

Finches Come in all the colors of the rainbow

 Flocks of Finches

Make An Easy Basket Feeder

Easy Ways to Landscape under Bird Feeders   

How to Make Your Own Suet

The Importance of Providing Water for Birds

Do Birds Get Angry?

Barn Owl is Angry!
from Oregon Dept. of Fish & Wildlife

Have you ever been dive-bombed by an angry bird?   Were you ever a witness to one bird attacking another?  You better believe birds get angry!  They become agitated in several different situations, and to diverse degrees; most notably in defense of their:

• Territory
• Family
• Food Source or Sources

  

A tufted titmouse has defined his territory by declaring his claim from the treetops of that area.  In doing so, he’s attracted the attention of a potential mate.  She likes his vocalizations, and the cut of his jib.  Then in flies another male tufted titmouse; this will never do!  Our intrepid little friend got there first . . .   Find out what happens 

Tufted Titmouse

by Grandma Pearl

Knowing When to Back Off:  Markers only birds can see

T

Don't Toss Those Egg Shells--Give Them to Your Wild Birds!

Birds Need Calcium Just Like Humans

Chicken Egg Shells that have been rinsed and dried.

This important mineral is essential for normal bone growth, muscle, nerve and brain function.  Low levels of calcium in a female's body can lead to problems as the eggs form.  This deficiency can also lead to smaller clutches, beak deformities and other skeletal problems.  Spring is a critical time for sufficient calcium in a female bird's body.  Also, as her newly-hatched baby birds begin to develop, they need the calcium for growth spurts.  Powerful flight muscles develop well when enough dietary calcium is present.

But as my wonderful blue jays can attest, autumn is a time when calcium reserves need to be at the ready.  I regularly add my egg shells to my wheelbarrow herbgarden, and have spied at least 6 blue jays taking turns grabbing the egg shells from that garden!  I'm guessing they need the calcium to fortify them for the colder months. I know that blue jays love to rob eggs from other birds' nests; perhaps they thought that it was just a huge 'nest' full of eggs!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO PREPARE EGGS:

It helps if you put a kitchen towel under the baggie.  Some tiny small pieces may pop through the bag!

• Zip-type baggie
• Rolling pin
• Kitchen towel
• Empty, dry chicken eggs

HOW TO PREPARE CHICKEN EGG SHELLS TO GIVE TO WILD BIRDS:

1. Rinse each egg shell inside, then set aside to dry.
2. Once the egg shells are dry, add them to a large plastic zip bag.
3. Use a rolling pin to crush the egg shells, turning the bag over several times.  You're looking for tiny pieces the birds can easily ingest.
4. Store the baggie in the fridge until you are ready to serve the shells to your birds.

Crushed egg shells are now ready to give to your wild birds.

Here's a quick video from youtube.com/user/SmellLikeDirt, which also shows how to easily prepare the egg shells for your wild birds.  

http://youtu.be/GiNRNw7yfE8

The shells can be added to a platform or tray-type feeder.  

If you like scrambled eggs, hard-boiled, or even eggs over easy, remember your wild birds this spring.  Cook an egg for them.  Chop up the egg and add some of your crushed shells to the mixture, then stand back and enjoy watching the birds gobble them up!  You will be ensuring that the next generation of backyard birds has enough calcium, as well as protein, to start out right.

Grandma Pearl
Want more fun ideas for helping your backyard birds?  Check out Pearl's Backporch Scrapbook
Free Bird Identification Apps
Fun Homemade Bird Treat Recipes
How to Make a Bird Nesting Ball!

Top 5 Best Foods to Help Birds Stay Warm

These beautiful blue jays are suckers for pieces of bread crust, or day old bakery items like rolls, whole grain bread, etc.  My chickadees and juncos also enjoy smaller pieces of the same items.  Fat and starches help birds maintain their metabolic rates.  Bakery products should not be offered exclusively, though.  Here’s a list of the top five foods to help wild birds stay warm even in the coldest weather:
1.  Black oil sunflower seed
2.  Suet
3.  Peanut Butter, offered on a special feeder, or slathered on bark
4.  Bacon grease soaked up by pieces of white or whole grain bread
5.  Fruit & Nut blend available commercially
Because many birds can easily assimilate black oil sunflower seeds, I have listed it first.  It contains all kinds of good fats, and vitamins and minerals to help maintain birds flight feathers as well as their metabolism.

The above image shows some of my Goldfinches in their winter plumage.  On top of the fresh snow I often toss sunflower seeds, which they seem to relish!
You can make your own suet, or buy it at your local big box hardware store, garden center or wild bird food center.  I have also found it in my grocery store and at large discount retail stores.  It isn’t hard to make your own, though.  And I find it more cost effective.  Here’s How
If you wish to offer peanut butter, you need to remember that it is oily and will leave a residue on any surfaces it contacts.  Slather it on tree bark that you don’t mind becoming a little discolored.  Keep in mind that other critters can easily find it, like my persistent red and grey squirrels, flying squirrels, raccoons, possums and mice.  Any tree-climbing animal will adore you!
Every now and then I crave bacon—real bacon, not the turkey kind!  When I do, I break up pieces of bread into the still warm grease.  Once it has cooled completely, I serve it to my birds on a platform feeder.  It doesn’t last long!  Birds love bacon just as much as people.
The fruit and nut blend I buy includes unsalted shelled peanuts, canary seed, grit (which is essential for bird digestion), pieces of dried cherries, raisins, white proso millet**, black oil and grey striped sunflower seeds, dried pumpkin seeds and bits of shelled walnuts.  A little goes a long way, so I offer a small amount each day in my basket feeder.  Blue jays, finches, chickadees, tufted titmice and woodpeckers all stop by many times during the day for this special treat.
**White Proso Millet is a favorite with my Dark-Eyed Juncos.

This basket feeder is easy to make, and it attracts a variety of wild birds all day long. 
How to Make an Easy Basket Feeder
Grandma Pearl

How to Make Suet
How to Make an Easy Bird Feeder Basket

Peanut Butter Feeder
Fruit & Nut Blend
White Proso Millet

The Juncos I Have Come to Know
Beautiful Blue Jays

Make an Easy Basket Bird Feeder

The snow was falling hard and fast.  Accumulations were predicted to reach an inch per hour, if not more.  Apparently my birds knew about this ahead of time, because there were dozens of them lining the tree branches awaiting their turn at the feeders.

I needed to add another place for them to eat, but I had no more feeders handy.  Keep in mind that there are 8 more feeders in other parts of my yard that were also filled with woodpeckers, chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, blue jays, juncos and more finches, among others!

Scratching my head, I finally came up with a solution that I had stashed in my sunroom—an old basket with a long handle, and not too deep.  The perfect bird feeder because it was rather loosely woven, and provided plenty of holes for drainage.

But the holes in the basket were obviously way too big to keep my bird seed from falling through.  Aha!  Also in my sunroom was an aluminum pie pan I had used under a large pot at one time.  I washed the pie pan thoroughly and dried it so that the seeds would not mold.  The pie pan needed drainage holes, so I hunted up my trusty hammer and a small nail.  I punched several holes in the aluminum pan, and filled the bottom with black oil sunflower seeds and a little bit of fruit and nut seed mixture.

I looped a flexible piece of wire under the handle and up through the hole in a weather shield I had used before for other open bird feeders.  That shield works very well to keep snow and rain from soaking the seeds.  Then I finished the loop over my clothesline.  If I had had another bird feeder pole, I would have used that instead, but the clothesline was very handy and easy to see from my living room window.

An alternative to the weather shield might be another larger aluminum pie pan with a hole punched in the middle, or even an old aluminum pizza pan.  Anything that will keep the seeds dry so the birds can enjoy them will work.

I was very pleased to see some of my goldfinches taking advantage of their new food source.  I have even had woodpeckers jump in for a seed or nut and then take off to the nearest tree with its treat.  I spent a lot of time that day watching my birds out the window.  There were breaks in the snowfall at times, but it snowed heavily other times.  The birds didn’t seem to mind, and continued to visit all the feeders.  It tickled me to see that I had provided yet another good spot for them to eat.

So if you have a basket, an aluminum pie plate, hammer, nail, pizza pan and a bit of wire, you have the makings for a fun bird feeder!

Enjoy!

Grandma Pearl

How to Make a Bird Nesting Basket

Make a Bird Feeder Wreath

Are Your Bird Feeders Ready for Winter?

How to Feed Birds Without Going Broke

Dark-Eyed Slate-colored Junco

 

Meet my Juncos from the Northeast U.S.!  These energetic ground feeding birds are with me year round.  They are most comfortable on the ground; juncos even prefer to nest on the ground, although they won’t turn down any opportunity.  A star decoration at my front door area makes a fine home for my juncos, even though it is roughly 7 feet off the ground. Juncos have a cool defense mechanism should a predator venture too close.  They flash their tails, which have bright white edges on either side, as they take flight.  It is enough to momentarily confuse the interloper so the junco can fly away safely.

Juncos devour black oil sunflower seeds when I toss them on the ground.  They mingle easily with the goldfinches, who sport darker plumage this time of year.  Notice that juncos (6”) are a little larger than the finches (4.5”).

 

You can plainly see the brown on this female’s back, which distinguishes her from the male, whose coloration is a darker gray without the brown.  Both she and he have very white bellies, helping them to blend in with the snowy background.  Birds fluff up their feathers as a way to fend off the cold.  This action creates air pockets that efficiently act as a thermal barrier, keeping their body heat in and the cold air out.

Listen for a distinctive ‘smack, smack’ interspersed with little twittering sounds, as they socialize with one another.  I love their songs, which remind me of lyrical sparrows, with lovely musical notes.

My juncos perch in smaller trees and shrubs, under bushes, and in open areas of grass.  They love insects as well as seeds, and seem to be especially fond of small juicy caterpillars.  Their beaks are strong enough to crack the seeds they love, as well as manage almost any insect that comes along.

This male junco likes to patrol my garden for insects.  Because it is a fenced area, he often uses the posts to survey the territory.  There is no need for pesticides because my friendly and beneficial birds are always on the case.  I rely on them to keep my gardens pest free, which also keeps them well fed—it’s a win-win!

Learn more about:

The Juncos I Have Come to Know

Best Ground Feeder for Juncos

Grandma Pearl

Basic Suet

Female Downy Woodpecker enjoying home made suet
by Grandma Pearl

Basic Homemade Suet is easy to make and more economical than buying commercial suet cakes.  Plus, you can be sure there are no harmful additives if you make it yourself.

You can find suet or beef fat trimmings at your local butcher shop, usually at a drastically reduced price.  Or, you can trim the fat from meat you cook yourself--save the fat scraps in a container and keep refrigerated until you are ready to render them.

Wild bird supply stores carry plain suet cakes that have already been rendered.  These can be used without any additions, or you can supplement them with bits of fruit, seeds or nutmeats to please your backyard birds.

If you choose to make your own suet from fat trimmings, here is the process:

1.  Cut the fat into small pieces, or use a food processor or meat grinder.
2.  In a deep saucepan, melt the fat OVER LOW HEAT.  Don't rush this step!  It is better to do this slowly than to risk a fire!  Treat it with respect as you do any cooking oil or other fat on the stove.
3.  Once the fat is completely melted, pour it slowly and carefully into molds or other containers.  Remember that the unmolded product will need to fit into your particular suet feeders.
4.  Allow to cool and then refrigerate for several hours.  Refrigeration causes the fat to solidify so it can be handled more easily.
5.  If you decide to add other ingredients to the suet, do that before pouring the suet into containers. 

These are some of the ingredients that I like to add:

• small pieces of nuts like peanuts, pecans or walnuts
• black oil sunflower seed
• peanut butter
• cracked corn or corn meal
• oats, wheat or white flour
• raisins, apple or other small fruit pieces, currants

Some of the birds that visit my suet feeders:

titmice, nuthatches, chickadees, woodpeckers

Grandma Pearl

More Homemade Bird Food:
Peanut Butter Treat
Pine Cone Bird Feeder
Mini Pumpkin Bird Feeder
Surprising Alternative Bird Foods
Best Suet Feeder

Learn More About:
Downy Woodpeckers
Hairy Woodpeckers
Red-Bellied Woodpeckers

Black Capped Chickadees
White-Breasted Nuthatches