Where are the birds?

Up until the past week or two, I was receiving calls and e-mails on a regular basis with one specific question: “Where are the birds?†This question came from callers not only from the immediate area but throughout western Connecticut and Dutchess County.  People just weren’t seeing birds, especially at feeders.

 There is no clear-and-simple answer to this. In addition to fluctuating from place to place, bird populations fluctuate seasonally and from year to year.  Remember the huge wave of pine siskins last winter? That was likely a cyclic event that won’t happen again this year — but we’ll see!  

I think the major reason why people were not seeing birds at feeders is that there was plenty of natural food available: plenty of native seeds, cones and persistent berries that birds love. Because of this, the birds were foraging in the brush, woodlands and forest edges, taking advantage of fresh premium natural food instead of going to feeders.

Just because it is cold doesn’t mean that birds rely exclusively on feeders. Birds can survive the cold just fine as long as there is available food to provide the energy they need to stay warm.  In fact, even the migratory birds (birds that breed here in the summer and fly south in the winter) don’t necessarily fly south because it is cold here.  They migrate to find the grubs and insects that they feed on that are not available here in the winter.

Foods are not alike, and birds have food preferences, just as humans do. If you’re not seeing birds at your feeders and have changed brands of birdseed lately, that could be the reason why.

Old seed or seed with a lot of filler is not appealing to birds. They deserve the best, don’t they?

Speaking of the best, if your neighbor has the grand-daddy of all feeding stations, this could be another reason that you don’t see birds at your feeder.  Adding diversity to your feeding station will attract a diversity of birds.  You don’t have to go crazy, but providing black oil sunflower seeds or maybe a mixed seed and some suet will help attract the variety of birds you’re hoping for at your feeder.

And remember to keep your feeders clean so you don’t facilitate the spread of disease.

 The good news is that the birds are back to most everyone’s feeders now and all of us “armchair birders†are breathing a sigh of relief.

Scott Heth is the director of Audubon Sharon and can be reached at sheth@audubon.org, (subject line: Nature Notes).