Birds need more daily food intake to survive cold winter days, approximately 25 percent more than in warmer weather. Providing a well-stocked winter feeding station can help birds more easily survive harsh winter weather, and bring them in close enough for you to observe and enjoy.
A well-equipped winter bird feeding habitat includes a heated bird bath, suet, a sunflower mix, Nyjer™ seed, peanuts, and dried or live mealworms. Joe’s Mix ($39.99 for a 30 lb. bag) is our signature, full spectrum bird seed mix designed to attract the widest variety of seed-eating birds. Nyjer™ ($20.99 for 10 lb. bag), also known as thistle, attracts various winter finches like red polls, pine siskins and purple finches, and birds that are here year round like chickadees, house finches and gold finches, now in their olive plumage.
A heated bird bath provides easy access to unfrozen water and is a great benefit to all of the birds in your backyard, including the many robins that winter in our area. If you are concerned about birds bathing in cold weather, use Carol’s Dry, Dry Birdie ($16.99 for 12” size). It’s a safety insert that floats in the heated bird bath which allows the birds to access the water for drinking but not for bathing. wildbirdstore.com
Carol Chenault is the manager of the All Seasons Wild Bird Store in Minnetonka.
