Corn: cracked, shelled, whole
If you are a bird feeder on a budget or if you are feeding hoards of birds feeding corn is one way to keep your birds happy.
Whole ears of corn offered on spike feeders or on hangers will make the woodpeckers and squirrels very happy. It's great fun to watch a squirrel trying to figure out a revolving corn wheel. Place your squirrel feeders as far as possible from your other bird feeders.
Shelled corn in hopper bird feeder or hanging tray feeders will attract cardinals, jays, ravens, crows, and grosbeaks.
Cracked corn in ground feeder trays will attract quails, grouse, pheasants, ducks, dove, starlings blackbirds, house sparrows and cowbirds.
Corn has a couple of serious problems: First, it is the bird food that has the highest risk of becoming contaminated with aflatoxins, which is harmful to birds. Second, it is a favorite of bears, raccoons, and deer-none of which we need to be feeding.
To decrease the chance of contamination don't buy corn in plastic bags, do not let it get wet (I keep mine in metal trash cans and only keep 50 pounds on hand), and in very humid or wet weather only put out what will be eaten in a day. Make sure you clean up the old corn and dispose of it, the compost pile is a good place.
It is best to have all of your corn feeders away from your other bird feeders so the less aggressive birds will not be scared off. If you can, separate them with a screen of shrubs or trees.
Never use any corn that has any type of die on it because it is probably a poison. Do not feed any popped corn it spoils too easily.
If you have a snow or an ice storm cracked corn is a good way to feed a lot of birds quickly. Feed smaller amounts several times during the day to reduce waste and spoilage.
Suet
Suet is now considered to be most kinds of beef fat and is safe to feed to birds. Suet is very attractive to insect eating birds, including woodpeckers, jays, nuthatches, chickadees, and starlings. Occasionally cardinals, wrens, thrashers, kinglets, creepers, and even some warblers will visit suet feeders. Suet is a high calorie energy source, that is easy for many birds to digest and metabolize, and is very important to birds in cold weather.
Raw suet goes bad quickly when the temperature is above freezing for any extended time. It is recommended tat you use rendered suet, which has been melted and has had the impurities removed. rendered suet can still get soft in the summer and coat the belly feathers of birds. If the bird is nesting the suet can clog the pores of the eggs preventing the embryo from getting enough oxygen.
Most of the suet cakes you can buy have a mixture of corn meal, cracked corn, peanuts, fruits or dried insects. Corn and peanuts can provide a medium for bacteria growth. Therefore, you may want to make your own suet cakes or make sure you are buying a high quality product. Always check the contents and the expiration date. I keep my suet cakes in the refrigerator until I use them.
I use several types of suet feeders including upside down feeders and combination suet/tray feeders.
I hope this article will help you in choosing bird food/seed and let you know what birds you; can expect to attract.
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