How to Attract a Greater Variety of Birds

Offering multiple kinds of foods throughout the year will help attract a greater variety of birds to your bird feeding station on a regular basis. Provide fresh water by setting up a birdbath for drinking and bathing. Birds are especially drawn to the sound of moving water. Add a fountain! Reduce pesticide use by avoiding harmful chemicals to support insects and other food sources birds rely on.

Each bird species has food preferences, and these may change seasonally.

Recommended Foods

Beyond our regionally-formulated seed blends, we recommend offering a broad selection of foods that attracts a greater variety of birds and meets their nutritional needs.

Peanuts

The best single source of protein and fat for birds. Some birds will cache nuts to retrieve later, making repeated trips to feeders to gather food.

Nyjer® (thistle)

Goldfinches’ favorite food. Nyjer’s high oil content is an excellent energy source for active birds and is best used in our specially-designed finch feeders.

Mealworms

Attracts common and uncommon insect-eating birds like bluebirds and wrens. Because mealworms crawl, place them in a smooth-sided feeder where they cannot crawl out.

Nectar

Hummingbirds’ favorite food. It’s important to continue offering nectar in areas where some hummingbirds stay in winter.

Suet

Woodpeckers’ and Bushtits' favorite. Suet is a high-energy, pure-fat substance that birds enjoy all year long. It is particularly helpful in winter when birds need more calories to stay warm.

Seed Cylinders

The quickest, simplest, longest-lasting way to feed your birds. Available, in a variety of flavors, our seed cylinders meet the nutritional needs and feeding behaviors of a number of different birds.

Seed & Suet Stackables

The quickest, simplest way to feed your seed- and suet-eating birds at the same time.

Jim’s Birdacious® Bark Butter®

The perfect blend of fat and protein, no other single bird food attracts a greater variety of species; over 140 birds and counting.