Nectar, Seed, or Window: How to Choose a Bird Feeder for Your Yard

Hang a feeder in the right spot and your yard changes within a week or two. Chickadees start making quick trips from the trees, finches line up on the perches, and if you put out sugar water in the warm months, a hummingbird may show up and hover right outside the window. It is one of the cheapest ways to bring a little life to a patio or a view from the kitchen sink.

The catch is that feeders are not one-size-fits-all. The birds you want, the pests you have, and how much cleaning you are willing to do all point toward different designs. Here is how to sort through them.

Top Bird Feeders

Start with the birds you want

Different birds eat different foods and feed in different ways. Hummingbirds drink nectar and need a sugar-water feeder with small flower-shaped ports. Finches, chickadees, and nuthatches are happy on a tube feeder with small perches. Cardinals and larger songbirds prefer a wider tray or platform where they can perch and crack seeds. Some birds, like juncos and doves, like to feed on the ground or on a low tray.

If you are not sure what visits your area, start with a simple hopper or tray feeder with a mixed seed or black oil sunflower seed, which attracts a wide range of species. Watch for a few weeks, then add a second feeder aimed at the birds you enjoy most.

Hummingbird feeders

Hummingbird feeders hold sugar water rather than seed. The two main shapes are the classic bottle, which hangs upside down over a base with ports, and the saucer, a shallow dish with ports on the lid. Bottles hold more and look traditional. Saucers are usually easier to clean and less likely to drip.

Look for features that keep pests out. An ant moat is a small cup above the feeder that you fill with water so ants cannot climb down to the nectar. Bee guards are small grates over the ports that let a hummingbird's long bill in but keep bees out.

This Perky-Pet pack includes two glass feeders, each holding 8 ounces of nectar. Every feeder has four flower-shaped ports with U-shaped perches so several birds can feed at once, plus a built-in ant moat and bee guards. The smaller size is a good match for a patio or a yard where you are just getting started.

FEED GARDEN's glass feeder is the top seller in wild bird feeders right now. It holds 16 ounces, has four metal flower ports with 360-degree perches and a built-in ant moat, and uses a gasket to prevent leaks when the wind picks up. The wide-mouth bottle makes cleaning and refilling easier.

Making nectar the right way

You do not need store-bought nectar. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology recommends one part plain white table sugar dissolved in four parts water. Do not use honey or food coloring. A red feeder is enough to catch a hummingbird's eye, so there is no need to dye the water.

Freshness matters more than the recipe. The Cornell Lab says sugar water should never sit out for more than two or three days, and should be changed daily in very hot weather, because mold grows and the sugar ferments. Make small batches and fill the feeder only partway if it is not emptying quickly.

Seed feeders

Seed feeders come in a few common styles. Tube feeders are clear cylinders with small ports and perches along the side. Hopper feeders look like a little house, with seed that slides down to a tray at the bottom. Platform or tray feeders are open, flat surfaces that attract the widest mix of birds but also leave seed exposed to rain.

FEED GARDEN's 13-inch tube feeder is built for small songbirds. It has six small ports with short perches sized for finches, chickadees, sparrows, and nuthatches. Larger birds like jays and grackles have trouble gripping it, so they are less likely to empty it or scatter seed. The lid lifts straight up for wide-mouth refills, and the clear tube shows you when seed is running low.

The Youvip feeder has a metal roof and base to stand up to chewing squirrels. It comes apart without tools for cleaning, and the roof slides up the hanging cable so you can refill it with one hand. A raised rail around the seed tray keeps seed from spilling while birds eat.

For a classic hopper, Walmart sells Pennington's red cedar Nature's Friend feeder. It holds about 3 pounds of seed, is made from Eastern red cedar, and hangs from a cable. The maker lists cardinals, finches, blue jays, and chickadees among its visitors, and it takes standard wild bird seed mixes.

For birds that prefer to eat low, Home Depot carries a standing tray feeder on a pole. The stainless steel mesh tray lets rain drain through and lifts out for cleaning, and the pole has three height settings. It is a simple way to serve juncos, doves, and other ground feeders without scattering seed on the lawn.

Picking the right seed

The seed you buy matters as much as the feeder. Black oil sunflower seed is a favorite of many backyard birds because the shells are thin and the seeds are rich in fat. Nyjer, a tiny black seed, is a finch favorite and needs a feeder with very small ports so it does not pour out. Some cheap mixes are heavy on filler seeds that many birds at hanging feeders pick out and drop, which wastes money and draws rodents. If you see a pile of one kind of seed under the feeder, switch to a blend without it.

Dealing with squirrels

Squirrels are the most common frustration for anyone who feeds birds. They are clever, strong, and can jump a surprising distance. There are two main defenses: feeder design and placement.

Weight-activated feeders have a perch or cage that drops down when something heavy lands on it, closing off the seed ports. Birds are light enough to eat, while squirrels trigger the closure. Cage feeders surround the seed with metal mesh sized for small birds. Baffles, dome or cone-shaped shields mounted above or below a feeder, stop squirrels from climbing down a hanger or up a pole.

This weight-activated feeder closes off the seed when a heavy animal lands on it, and it has a 360-degree perch tray, a rainproof roof, and a seed catcher to cut down on waste. The maker recommends hanging it from a pole, shepherd's hook, or clear branch away from roofs and fences so squirrels have fewer places to jump from.

Target also carries the Brome Squirrel Buster Classic, a long-time squirrel-proof design from a company that specializes in them.

Window feeders for close-up views

A window feeder sticks to the glass with suction cups and puts the birds right in front of you. This clear acrylic model uses five suction cups, has a sloped roof and drainage holes to keep seed dry, and a tray that lifts out for cleaning. Kids and indoor cats both tend to love it.

Any feeder near glass raises the question of window strikes. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology now says older advice about safe feeder distances from windows is no longer thought to hold up. Its current advice is to make nearby windows bird-friendly instead. That means markings on the outside of the glass spaced about 2 inches apart across the whole window, such as tempera paint, tape dots, or closely spaced decals, or an outside screen that covers the full pane. One or two stickers on a big window will not do the job, and hawk silhouettes do little to help.

Keep feeders clean

A dirty feeder can do more harm than good. Moldy seed and droppings can spread disease between birds. The Cornell Lab suggests cleaning seed feeders about once every two weeks, and more often in heavy use, wet weather, or if you see sick birds. Take the feeder apart and wash it in a hot dishwasher, or scrub it with soap and boiling water or a dilute bleach solution of no more than one part bleach to nine parts water. Rinse well and let it dry before refilling.

Hummingbird feeders need more frequent care. Clean them at least once a week with hot water and a bottle brush, without soap. Rake up old hulls under seed feeders too, since piles of wet seed can grow mold and attract rodents.

Which one to pick

If you want hummingbirds, start with a small glass or saucer feeder with an ant moat and bee guards, and keep the nectar fresh. If you want a steady stream of songbirds, a tube feeder for small birds or a hopper feeder with a mixed seed is a good first step. If squirrels are already raiding your yard, go straight to a weight-activated or caged design and hang it away from jumping-off points. And if you mostly want to watch, a window feeder puts the show right at eye level.

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