As winter and the first frosts approach, birds often have difficulty finding food and many of them cannot find shelter on cold nights. In your gardens, you can help them during this period by offering them suitable food and a cosy nest.
Why take care of birds outdoors?
When cold weather arrives and the days get shorter, birds in the sky have difficulty finding food, which is becoming increasingly scarce because of the drop in temperature. It is therefore possible to help them by offering them rich food and shelter so that they can survive the winter.
These adorable companions who animate the gardens during the beautiful days spend a lot of energy to maintain an adequate body temperature, so they burn their calories faster. Moreover, the mortality rate due to lack of food among birds of the sky during this period is high, it is even higher than the number of deaths due to the cold.
Many birds are small and do not migrate to warmer regions like some of their mates. We obviously find robins, sparrows and chickadees. Obviously the feathered animals present in your home can vary according to the region, you can learn to recognize the birds in your garden and therefore adapt the food according to the needs of each one.
What are the ideal facilities?
Before starting to feed the birds during the winter period, you should choose the location of the seeds in your garden. Indeed, they are shy and are frightened very quickly, so it is better to optimize their comings and goings to the food source. First of all, you should try to find a place far away from the house and trees, avoiding our feline friends to come and hunt birds. Sun rays are rare during the winter, so you can also try to place the kennel in an open area that will capture the heat during the day. The feeder should be high, more than 1 meter from the ground, this will reassure them. It is also advisable to choose a niche where to place the seeds, they will be protected from bad weather, such as rain and snow, which are numerous at this time of the year. You can add perches to facilitate access for the birds. There are many models of nesting boxes for outdoor use, however, you can also build it yourself with a few wooden boards and a stake. You will quickly see that the birds will come back regularly once they understand that they have a source of food in your home. You will enjoy watching them and seeing them come back during the long winter months.
When to remove the feeder?
The birds are free, they must learn to feed themselves, it is normal to help them during the cold weather, however, as soon as the sunny days come back, it is important to remove the food. It is advisable to reduce the proportions as soon as spring arrives until no more seeds are given to them. This will encourage them to sustain themselves. Be careful not to remove the food too early, usually it should be removed in April or early May. However, this may depend on the region as well as the birds that come to your garden. As the winter progresses, you will notice which birds come regularly and you can remove the feeder according to the needs of each species.
Giving outdoor birds shelter and food during the winter helps them temporarily. You will be delighted to see them flying and singing in your garden until spring.
