Food for thought: feed the birds - from the BTO

As autumn draws in and food for birds in the wider countryside is depleted, our feathered companions will start to flock to feeders in our gardens. The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) provides a master class on what the public can do to help.

Last winter taught us many lessons: travel chaos dilutes the romance of a white Christmas; Frosty the Snowman can begin to feel like a permanent guest; and when it gets really cold huge numbers of birds precipitate from the sky and settle in our gardens. Thousands of hungry beaks snaffled up tasty morsels in UK gardens last winter, and as the spectacle unfurled participants in the year-round BTO Garden BirdWatch recorded the dramatic comings and goings.

As we gear up for another winter, now is a great time to think about our garden visitors again. For them, our patch can mean the difference between life and death and the BTO Garden BirdWatch has issued guidelines on how householders can help:
In a nutshell

1. Top foods:
Oil-rich seeds, such as sunflower hearts and nyjer
Ground-up peanuts
Finely grated cheese, beef or vegetable suet
Chunks of windfall (especially) or fresh fruit
Dried fruit (that has been soaked first) – note, can be toxic to dogs
Mealworms and other live-foods (alive or dried)
Beef or vegetable suet-based ‘cakes’
Pinhead oatmeal or uncooked porridge oats

2. Foods to avoid:
Soft fats and oils (can soil feathers)
Dried foods e.g. coconut, uncooked rice (could swell after ingestion)
Bread (nutritionally lacking compared with other foods)
Milk (birds are not adapted to digest milk)
Cooked porridge (can stick to beak)

3. Provide clean fresh water: to drink and to keep feathers in good condition for insulation.

4. Don’t provide too much! Ensure that food does not go mouldy and clean feeders regularly. Excess food can attract vermin.

5. Avoid substantial trimming of berry producing vegetation such as holly and ivy that will continue to hold fruit long into winter.

6. Record what you see through the BTO Garden BirdWatch so that we can monitor garden birds every week of the year.