“The reason most people feed the birds is because they enjoy watching them,” the wildlife lecturer assured us. “There is plenty of food available in Iowa, even in winter, and our usual wintering birds can spot it over a wide range of territory.”
He went on to explain that, aside from the obvious abundance of grain spilled and left unharvested in fields, weeds, grasses and other native plants produce large amounts of seeds and fruits to nourish our wild bird population. During normal Iowa winter weather, if your feeding station goes empty for a day or two, birds know where to find other sources of food.
During winters of average temperatures and snowfalls, most wintering birds deal with a shortage of available food by simply moving south or to some other area where food is more abundant.
During periods of extreme cold and heavy snowfalls, however, they tend to shelter and depend on nearby feed sources for sustenance. Those sources may be places where livestock are fed daily, where they have access to stored grain or your bird-feeder. You do them no favors by feeding them generously for a time and then discontinuing, even for a day, and leaving them with no food during severe weather when it is difficult for them to travel. Flying uses up lots of energy and eating is their most important winter activity. If you go away for days at a time for winter vacations or even a brief Christmas holiday trip, be sure to arrange for someone to keep your bird-feeders filled – you never know when the weather might turn severe and leave birds without access to food, especially if you have made them reliant on your feeding station.
We sometimes see the odd migratory bird long after winter has set in. I once found a bluebird perched on my deck railing on Christmas Eve and have to assume he stuck around too long because someone had been providing food for him and then suddenly discontinued, thus leaving him and any other migratory birds who depended on that feeding station with nothing to keep them alive. Unlike the other birds who remain here over winter and know where to find food, that little bluebird was very likely doomed to starve or freeze to death.
It is also cruel to discontinue feeding when weather is unseasonably mild as on balmy early spring days. Such weather often brings early arrivals seeking mates and nesting sites long before plants are producing food. If the birds come to rely on you during mating and nest-building time it can be disastrous to suddenly withdraw your contribution to their diet just because the snow is gone and the sunshine is warm. There are sometimes other things for birds to survive on besides seeds, though usually scarce and often harmful. For instance; one winter there were many unharvested grapes available for birds and other animals. The grapes had frozen, but an early thaw caused them to ferment on the vine. For several days, a number of tipsy robins and other birds staggered across our lawn and crashed into outbuildings, unable to navigate normally. (This can also happen when bird-feeders become wet from melting snow or spring rains, causing the grain to ferment, so protect your feeders from precipitation and save the birds from crippling injuries.)
While it is true, as first mentioned here, that the main reason for feeding the birds is so we can enjoy watching them from up close, that benefit comes at a price beyond the cost of the birdseed, cracked corn and suet cakes we provide.
To prevent the spread of disease among your feathered guests, move your bird feeder to a different location every couple of weeks, clean away droppings and spilled seed every day or two, and wash the feeder itself with a bleach and water solution when there are signs of mold or fermentation.
If you depart for warmer destinations during winter months, ask someone reliable to maintain the feeding station, or take your feeders indoors so the birds won’t expect to find them filled. They will return soon once the feeders reappear and reward you with their presence and colorful antics.