What to Feed Wild Birds in Winter

You may be wondering how to help garden birds in winter; the easiest thing you can do for them is to feed them. Their dietary needs alter a little during winter and they’re less focused on nesting and breeding as they tend to do in the summer months. The harsh reality is that many birds don’t make it through winter.

Garden species of birds are often small, they weigh very little to help them fly, so comparatively they have a greater surface area to their mass and get cold easily. If birds get too cold, all of their energy goes into warming their bodies up which uses all of the calories they’ve previously eaten and can leave them with no energy to forage for more food.

Similar to the warmer months, the best winter foods for garden birds are seeds, nuts, insects, and anything they can forage for themselves in the wild. There is still availability of food during the winter, it just becomes scarce and harder to find. Many insects go into a dormant state during the winter and become harder to find. It would be like eating all the pizza you want in the summer and then having to run miles just to eat one slice in the winter! You’re already using extra energy to keep warm and on top of that you have to work harder for your food - that’s exactly why so many garden birds don’t make it through winter.             

Finding food becomes a significantly more difficult task for birds, so by feeding them in winter, you’re ensuring they can keep their energy up and sustain themselves.

Putting food out means they don’t have to work as hard to find their own and you will usually find that once you start feeding them, the same birds will come back to you year after year.

There are a few considerations you need to take into account when sourcing winter food for garden birds - one often overlooked aspect is where to put the food. During summer it’s fine to place food on the ground. If the birds don’t get to it throughout the day, other scavengers may pick up the rest in the evening and you can avoid rotting food in your garden! In the winter, especially if the ground is freezing over or it’s snowing, avoid putting food on the ground as bird’s feet may be in contact with the cold ground for too long. Food should be placed up on a bird feeder or table to limit contact time with the cold ground.

During winter, birds spend more energy trying to stay warm so their calorific intake should increase with the demand for more energy. Unfortunately, with less food around they often struggle with this but by helping to feed your local bird population, you can help make winter less strenuous for them. Insects are much more scarce in the winter so their source of protein is reduced and we all know that fat is a great insulator from the cold, so foods that are rich in protein or fat are great for winter.

Foods like peanuts contain plenty of both fat and protein and usually go down well with local bird populations, but they must be fresh as roasted or salted peanuts can cause more harm than good. Fat balls are a great addition to any bird’s diet, especially in winter when they’re so desperate for a little more insulation. Fat balls should always be removed from the netting they often come in to avoid injury to the birds that feed on them.

If you’re considering what to feed birds in winter from the kitchen, then you have quite a few options. If you’re looking to just provide extra calories, then waste food like stale bread can provide them with short-term energy to keep warm. Hard cheeses are full of fats and great for wild birds but avoid giving them any soft cheeses. Bruised fruit you no longer plan to eat is also a great source of nutrients. You would be surprised how much food you have that would probably go to waste that would actually make great food for garden birds in winter!

If you’re not sure what to feed the birds visiting your garden this winter, take a look at what we have in stock to help treat your local population to bounties of nutritional goodness with only the best quality bird treats and food stocked.