Bird Feeders
Bird Feeders, also known as bird tables, are usually used for home bird watching. It is a device meant for providing food for birds. The bird feeders are usually placed outdoors like in a backyard or a garden. These days a wide variety of bird feeders are available in market that not only help in serving food to birds but is also a means of decorating your garden or backyard. The placement of a bird feeder also affects its ability to attract birds. Thus it should be kept at such places where birds can easily find them and have their food.
There are different types of bird feeders available in market with various styles and functions. You can buy one depending on your choice and requirement. Types of feeders include –
Seed Feeders: These are the most common type of feeders available in the market. The design of tubes, trays, and hoppers vary from one feeder to another. Seeds used in this type of feeder include sunflower seeds and mixed seeds. Various types of birds attracted towards a seed feeder are finches, chickadees, and cardinals.
Oriole Feeders: These types of feeders are generally used for New World orioles, a unique kind of birds. These are traditionally colored in orange colors and supply artificial nectar to birds.
Hummingbird Feeders: These feeders are meant especially for hummingbirds, which belong to Trochilidae family. These feeders provide liquid nourishment in the form of a sugar solution. This food is colored red in color to attract more birds towards it.
Suet Feeders: These types of feeders are generally used for woodpeckers, nuthatches, flickers and squirrel proof bird feeders and many other types of species. These feeders are made up as a metal cage with a plastic coating of suet in the form of cake or blocks. Suet is a raw beef or mutton fat that provides warmth in winter season to birds.
Decorative Bird Feeders: These types of feeders are beautifully decorated and adorned with many different elements. Some of the decorative bird feeders are ceramic embossed floral feeder, glazed silhouette bird feeder, and fancy swirl bird feeder.
Where to keep the Bird Feeders?
One must keep the bird feeder in an appropriate and suitable place so that more and more birds get attracted towards it. Some of the points to be remembered before feeder placement is –
* Always keep your bird feeder in a quiet area.
* Place it in such a place where it is easy to see and convenient to refill.
* Placing the feeder close to natural surroundings such as trees or shrubs will attract more birds.
* Be careful while placing the feeder near the cover because then squirrels may jump with the help of branches and eat the food. There should be a distance of almost 10-12 ft between feeder and branches.
Negative Impacts of Bird Feeders
Apart from providing a good source of food provider to birds, the feeder also has some risks and negative impacts. This include-
* One of the major risks involved while placing a bird feeder is the possibility of contracting and spreading diseases by birds. This may be due to the regular disinfecting of feeders and water stations.
* There is a great amount of risk for birds approaching the bird feeders. They may be an easy target for cats and other birds like hawks.
* Birds can also get injured or killed by hitting in to the nearby windows.
* Feather of the birds dropped near feeder can also form environmental problems.
These days many companies are introducing bird feeders with new and unique designs and styles. You can buy these feeders from the store or can also order them online through websites. This article was translated by englisch übersetzung