Drought conditions have driven up prices of some ingredients found in high-quality wild bird seed mixes, including black oil sunflower seeds that attract a wide array of bird species.
But many inexpensive, “filler” seeds go to waste in birds’ feeders because most backyard birds do not prefer them.
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Sunflower Seed
Sunflower seeds are popular snacks that boast nutritious fats and proteins while offering many health-promoting nutrients, such as vitamin E, folate and zinc.
Sunflower seed hulls are used to produce sunflower oil, while their seeds serve as food for wildlife and pets alike. People also eat them directly or add them to granola and trail mix recipes or sprinkle on salads as an additional garnish.
These black oil sunflower seeds are beloved favorites among songbirds and are sure to draw them to your garden. Their smaller and thinner shell makes it easier for birds to open them; and their pleasingly smoky, sweet, and tart taste provide a delicious break from Stubb’s Bar-B-Q or Dill Pickle from BiGS!
Safflower Seed
Safflower seeds are small, thin-hulled birdseeds packed with fats and proteins essential for songbird health, known to deter squirrels as well as aggressive birds such as grackles and starlings. If you want to try them for yourself, start out mixing safflower seed in with your usual bird seed gradually increasing the ratio over time.
Safflower seed can be offered in hopper, tray or tube feeders and is loved by cardinals, blue jays, grosbeaks and chickadees alike.
Safflower seed can be purchased at most home improvement stores, garden centers and pet shops as well as online. Bulk purchases will save money and ensure there is enough seed to stock your backyard bird feeders with. Safflower is sometimes known by other names such as niger or nyjer seed.
Millet Seed
Birds adore this crop’s white, shelled seeds – whether offered on its own or mixed together – and it is often chosen by ground feeding birds such as juncos, sparrows, and towhees as an early morning treat.
Millets, unlike wheat and rice, are drought-tolerant cover crops becoming increasingly popular across the Midwest. Not only are millets an excellent source of protein, calcium, iron zinc and lipids but they can also act as cover crop staples!
Millets such as finger millet, foxtail millet, little millet, fonio and proso can provide food security to poor populations in harsh climatic regions if grown on larger plots than corn and soybeans – but often go overlooked due to limited market awareness and seed availability [124]. A marketing strategy could promote their common names so as not to overlook these potential crops [125].
Nuts & Fruits
Bring songbirds into your yard by offering them high-energy food that keeps them flying and singing. Wild birds require energy for flight, warmth and food sources – provide them with year-round supplies of nutritious feeders to feed themselves with energy-rich nutrients that they require. Experiment with different kinds of birdseed or consider animal-proof squirrel-proof feeders in addition to offering year-round supplies of bird food in various forms such as block feeders or suet feeders for optimal bird attracting success – don’t forget some extra treats such as nectar or mealworms as special treats if possible!
Suet
Suet is an ideal addition to many bird feeders, attracting species such as woodpeckers, chickadees, flickers and nuthatches as well as winter songbirds like wrens and warblers.
Because it contains easily digestible fats that quickly provide energy to birds, this food source is ideal for cold weather when keeping body temperatures up is critical to survival.
Birders use suet cakes containing nuts, fruit bits and mealworms as lures for more species to come out to feed on their offerings. But you can easily create your own suet by rendering down beef tallow and mixing it with seeds – something birders often do!
Savvy chefs prize suet as it melts much later than butter or shortening, enabling lighter and crispier pastry doughs. Available both locally in specialty British food shops as well as online (brand Atora), it makes an excellent ingredient for making dense English puddings like Christmas pudding or suet dumplings.
