Wild birds enjoy eating fruits and berries, providing a healthier alternative to general wild bird mixes such as black oil sunflower, striped sunflower and peanuts.
Provide fresh fruit such as cut oranges or apples on spikes or in specially designed feeders to attract birds such as Baltimore Orioles, catbirds, robins and bluebirds that enjoy snacking on this treat. The Baltimore Oriole is particularly fond of fresh fruits.
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Dried Fruit
Dried fruit added to backyard bird feeders can offer wild birds an interesting addition to their regular diet while simultaneously stimulating mental stimulation and encouraging natural foraging behaviors, while providing several important nutrients.
Dried fruit can be provided to birds either alone, combined with other types of food, or placed inside a hopper or platform feeder. Soaking dried fruits before offering is often recommended during hot weather when birds may experience drought conditions and their natural water sources have likely dried up.
Try offering an assortment of dried fruits such as raisins, currents and apricots along with apples and oranges as dried treats for wild birds to feast upon. There are also dried fruit blends designed specifically to attract wild birds that you can place into a hopper or platform bird feeder such as Lyric High Energy Wild Bird Mix; bruised oranges with some flesh still attached as well as the rinds from melons with some flesh left attached may also attract them!
Fruit Jelly
Orioles and other fruit-eating birds can be lured to feeder stations with sweet jelly made from fresh or store-bought fruit varieties, either homemade or store bought. Jellies and preserves contain small bits of fruit suspended within a clear, slightly gelled syrup base that attracts them.
Jelly requires high acidity levels for proper formation, with sugar working with fruit acids to form firm jelly texture. Commercial pectin products containing organic acids like fumaric acid will guarantee proper gelling.
Use standard canning jars with two-piece lids as storage vessels. Be wary of those that contain cracks or chips as well as bands or rings with rust; any defects prevent airtight seals from functioning correctly and should be thrown out immediately.
Jellies and preserves should be prepared using fruits that contain high concentrations of pectin, such as tart apples, crabapples, elderberries, cranberries, lemons, kiwis, blackberries mulberries or raspberries. Other low pectin fruits like apricots and peaches must be combined with higher-pectin fruits to get good results – either adding commercial or homemade pectin is also effective.
Fruit Blends
Some wild birds, like tanagers, depend on fruit for sustenance. As such, they will frequent feeders that provide fresh fruit both during the hotter summer months and harsh winter conditions in order to snack on its benefits and attract their young.
Maintaining healthy bird seed blends can be as simple as adding fruit to them. A nutrient-rich mix can attract songbirds that enjoy snacking on nuts and seeds while also drawing woodpeckers, nuthatches, cardinals, and grosbeaks to your feeder. Such blends often feature black oil sunflower seeds, millet and cracked corn alongside peanuts and safflower seed which are beloved among various bird species.
Red Safflower Feeder Blend was developed specifically to attract cardinals and other large-beaked backyard birds, like cardinals. This year-round mix features minimal waste while being rich in nutrition – no fillers like milo or wheat needed! In addition, no harmful toxins may threaten birds and squirrels!
Fruit & Nut Feeders
Nut and fruit feeders attract birds that don’t normally visit seed feeders, such as orioles and robins, as well as those relying on nuts for sustenance like warblers and wood ducks.
Feeding birds throughout autumn with various nuts and fruits will ensure they have all of the nutrition they need as they prepare to spend winter on the wings, providing them with energy reserves to combat cold weather conditions.
Jelly can also be offered as bait to songbirds, though you should do it with caution as many jelly brands contain high concentrations of added sugars that could harm their health.
Block-style feeders make it easy to provide multiple seeds, nuts and fruits at once in one dish while keeping squirrels and larger birds away from accessing it. They’re an ideal way to supplement a regular wild bird seed feeding program year-round with additional food source.
