Wild Bird Feeding Tips

Are you feeding wild birds this winter? If you are, how often are you cleaning your feeders? There are several studies that demonstrate the benefits of feeding birds, such as improved body fat. Birds with more fat have a better chance of surviving cold winter nights, especially 20-below nights, but one of the major problems associated with feeders is disease.

Some of the diseases are transmitted through close contact with other birds such as conjunctivitis (pink eye) and are non-fatal, but other diseases such as salmonellosis can kill birds. Many birds carry bacteria, e.g. salmonella, in their intestinal tract that would normally have little impact on another bird, but if they poop at a feeder, that poop is picked up by other foraging birds.

So, what can you do to keep your winter visitors healthy? CLEAN THOSE FEEDERS. That doesn’t mean trying to wipe down a feeder while its 20 below zero, but try using a broom or whisk brush to remove old feed and bird poop. This can reduce outbreaks of diseases such as salmonellosis.  

Note that some feeders carry a higher risk of spreading disease. Any feeder that allows birds to “walk thru” the food also allows birds to poop in the food. Don’t throw those feeders out as some of the little birds will only use that kind of feeder, e.g. pine siskins and juncos, just clean them periodically. If you spread food on the ground because the dark-eyed juncos and pine siskins prefer this method of foraging, be sure to sweep/rake out the area every few days to remove bird poop.

For more information on disease transmission or the benefits of feeding birds, check out these scientific articles:

Adelman, J. S., Moyers, S. C., Farine, D. R., & Hawley, D. M. (2015). Feeder use predicts both acquisition and transmission of a contagious pathogen in a North American songbird. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 282(1815), 20151429.

Tizard I: Salmonellosis in wild birds. Sem Avian Exotic Pet Med. 2004, 13 (2): 50-66

Wilcoxen, T. E., Horn, D. J., Hogan, B. M., Hubble, C. N., Huber, S. J., Flamm, J., . . . Wrobel, E. R. (2015). Effects of bird-feeding activities on the health of wild birds. Conservation Physiology, 3(1).