Page 73 - The Hunt - Winter 2024

Feeding birds can be as simple as tossing cracked corn on the ground or
as elaborate as erecting feeding stations with seeds and suet (animal fat). “The basic bird food is sunflower seeds, with or without shells—and it should be without any filler,” says Vicki Selinger, a backyard bird expert at the Wild Birds Unlimited store in Hockessin. “Birds lose 10% of their body weight in winter, so they also need protein—like suet.”
If you’re installing a feeder for the first time, don’t expect to be immediately hosting birds without further inducements. “Birds are sight feeders,” Selinger says. “You need to put bark butter [a spreadable suet] on top of the feeder and stick some seeds in it so birds will know food is there.”
Birds also need water—though keeping a bath or other container operative in freezing weather can be a challenge. Francis advises that feeders be cleaned out periodically to prevent contamination and disease among birds. “Bird feeders aren’t bad, but they’re mainly junk food for the birds,” he says. “Birds need the protein they get from insects and other sources.”
Improving natural habitats for birds is the most important contribution humans can make. According to a study published by the Cornell Lab, there are 2.9 million fewer birds in the U.S. than there were 50 years ago, mainly due to habitat loss.
A blue jay (inset) and a mourning dove.
“Forests alone have lost one billion birds,” the study notes. “Grassland bird populations collectively have declined by 53% or another 720 million birds”
Certified in the selective use of defoliants, Cottrell spends most of his time getting rid of invasive species in Middle Run Valley Natural Area north of Newark. He’s also heading the eradication of invasive species and improving bird habitats in Newark’s Curtis Mill Park, establishing Delaware Audubon as its official caretaker. Flowers and bushes that attract insects have been planted
in the park, and a large bluebird condo towers over its meadows. “It stays full,” Cottrell says, adding that the species will stay year-round if they have shelter and places to nest.
Francis stresses the importance of using our own backyards and gardens
as year-round habitats with shelter and food. Flowers that attract butterflies and insects are important in summer, and plants like winterberry holly provide food in late winter. Francis is a proponent of ecologist Doug Tallamy’s mission to convert individual home
and property owners into biodiversity warriors, providing native plants and removing invasive ones. “The idea is that, taken altogether, our backyards are the biggest national park in America,” Francis says.
Visit westchesterbirdclub.org, dosbirds.org and delawareaudubon.org.
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