Feeding wild birds fruit can attract various species while remaining less messy than other forms of feeders. Fresh or dried fruit pieces can be placed on platform feeders or suet cages to attract wild birds.
Some fruits, like bananas, contain high levels of sugar that could be toxic for birds if consumed in large amounts. Other varieties, like berries and juniper berries, offer more nutritional benefits to birds.
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Apples
Apples are an incredible source of nutrition for birds. Packed full of carbohydrates, fiber and vitamin C – apples provide your wild friends with one of the most satiating snacks!
Be mindful when providing birds with food to avoid offering too much to them in one sitting and risk attracting rodents or other unwanted pests.
Apples make great additions to bird feeders, but be aware they tend to bruise and rot quickly. Rehydrated freeze-dried apples may also provide an occasional treat; cutting it into small pieces helps avoid choking. You might also consider offering raisins or dried cranberries as additional carbohydrates for your feathered friends.
Grapes
Orioles and other songbirds enjoy sipping from juicy grapes, as these beauties contain calcium and phosphorous essential for bone health, as well as Vitamin A for immune support.
Fruits of all varieties can provide food sources for birds, but muscadine grapes stand out as particularly appealing options for hummingbirds. With their heat-resistant varieties that bronze beautifully under the sun and delicious juicy sweetness that draws them in like magnets.
Grapes’ antioxidants play an essential role in protecting against heart disease. By relaxing blood vessels through vasorelaxation and countering oxidative stress and platelet aggregation, they help ensure healthy cardiovascular systems. Eating grapes regularly can also help preserve brain health by slowing cognitive decline.
Bananas
Bananas are an irresistibly tasty treat for parakeets, cockatoos and other tropical bird species, providing essential vitamins, potassium and fiber.
They are technically known as berries, produced by several species of large herbaceous plants belonging to the Musa genus. Each banana plant produces soft, sweet flesh with high starch content surrounded by an outer peel with green, yellow, red or brown colorings depending on what variety of banana it produces.
Banana chunks, slices and pieces can make an engaging family activity in your backyard bird feeding station. However, be wary of providing any fruit with added sugars, preservatives or ingredients which could be toxic or unhealthy for wild birds. Cake or cookies pieces should also be offered, though any with frosting or sugary decorations should be avoided as these could prove toxic or hazardous for their wellbeing.
Berries
Birds love berries, and you can provide them in various forms. A tray or dish feeder filled with cut fruit such as oranges, bananas and cherries may draw orioles in. Or you could skewer slices or halves of larger fruits on solid wire skewers and suspend them from platform feeders such as the Songbird Essentials Double Fruit Feeder to provide even more options for orioles to feast upon!
Berries provide birds with essential nutrition year-round, making them a fantastic offering all year. However, do be mindful that certain varieties have high sugar contents and should only be fed sparingly; additionally, some berries (such as cloudberries and bearberries ) may be harmful or toxic to humans and should never be offered.
Raisins
Raisins make an irresistibly tasty treat for birds of most species, providing essential potassium-rich nourishment while helping balance out acidity in certain species’ diets. Safe for consumption by birds, they may be added safely to bird feeders in small quantities for them to enjoy! You may even find raisins available commercially packaged dried fruit blends suitable for hopper and platform feeders.
Like grapes, sunflower seeds contain many essential vitamins and minerals in small doses for birds. Their nutrition includes Vitamin A, B and C – known for supporting energy conversion, immune function and healthy cells – along with calcium, iron potassium and other essential trace nutrients. When offered excessively though, sunflower seeds may lead to weight gain which in turn poses a choking hazard if their plumpness gets out of hand.
