Like other living creatures, bird survival requires food, water, and shelter. Here are some tips to help birds survive the cold weather.
Leave Your Leaves and Rake Them Into Flower or Vegetable Beds
Songbirds forage in leaf litter looking for tiny insects and insect eggs. Many beneficial insects overwinter in leaf litter.
Leave Seedheads Standing
Most native perennials have seed heads that birds eat throughout the winter. Rudbeckia, coneflowers, coreopsis, sunflowers, and most daisy-like flowers are some of their favorites. Also, asters, ironweed, goldenrod, mountain mint, and many grasses provide needed food for the birds.
Don’t Trim Your Berry-Producing Shrubs
Native hollies, viburnum, beautyberry, spicebush, and chokecherry provide berries for hungry birds throughout the winter.
Keep Your Feeders Clean and Filled
Winter is the time when birds will appreciate your feeder, especially during cold and stormy weather. It’s important for the feeders to be close to shelter where small birds can quickly find refuge from predators. Sunflower seeds, peanut splits, nyger, millet, and suet are all good choices. Do not feed birds bread and other processed foods. This is the equivalent of junk food for birds. Do not use old moldy birdseed. This can be harmful or fatal to birds. Clean your feeder regularly with a 10% bleach solution.
Provide Drinking Water
Birds need drinkable water, which is often difficult to find in icy weather. If you have a birdbath, you can use a birdbath heater. It prevents the water from freezing, even on the very coldest days. Make sure you keep it clean and filled with fresh water.
Provide Shelter
Birds take shelter in the protective boughs of evergreens or within any shrubs that provide thick growth. If you have nestboxes, clean them out. Wipe them down or spray them with a 10% bleach solution. Many birds take shelter from the wind and weather in an empty nestbox. Cavity-nesting birds like chickadees and downy woodpeckers especially enjoy enclosed cavities. You may want to hang a roosting box or roosting pockets.
Use Bird-Friendly Holiday Decorations
When buying outdoor holiday decorations, make sure any berries are real and not plastic. Birds can ingest plastic berries thinking they are food. This can have fatal consequences. Choose real fruit, pinecones, and seed garlands. If you purchase a live tree, instead of putting it in the trash after the holidays, use it in your yard as a shelter for birds and other small animals.
Sources: Penn State Extension, American Bird Conservancy
