Birdfeeders

When we put up tube feeders, hopper feeders, hummingbird feeders in our yards, we know we are helping our local birds, but maintaining or even increasing our bird populations has some real benefits to nature. Birds and plants have an interesting connection that has developed over thousands of years. This interaction is necessary for the survival of birds and the environments they live in. Birds eat the fruits, buds, flowers and nectar of plants. As they do this, they are actually pollinating these plants and dispersing their seeds over the surrounding area. This is so important that in the eastern forests, at least 300 deciduous trees, shrubs and vines depend exclusively on birds to spread their seeds. While rodents destroy seeds by chewing into the seed coat, birds eat only the fleshy fruit. Therefore, the seeds pass through the birds’ gizzards completely intact. The protective seed cover may be scratched which only improves the chance of germination. Finally, these seeds also benefit from the high-nitrogen excrement that surrounds them when they fall to the ground. As we understand this mutual dependence, we become more aware of planting bird friendly plants in our yards. Hanging hopper bird feeders and having bird baths is important to draw birds in, but also providing these kinds of plants will certainly increase the bird traffic in your yard as well as help establish new feeding areas for birds.