SCOTT SHALAWAY Feeding wild birds

My winter birds are back, so it's time to stock the feeders. Juncos and white-throated sparrows returned before Halloween, and I've already seen pine siskins, purple finches, and red-breasted nuthatches. So here are some tips for feeding your favorite backyard birds.
Beware of the many inexpensive seed mixes available. Often they are loaded with wheat, oats and milo, seeds that most birds won't eat. Judge the quality simply by reading the ingredients label. Sunflower seeds should always be listed first, followed by other "good" seeds such as nuts and white millet.
Black-oil sunflowers seeds rank as the best single food for wild birds. These small, thin-shelled seeds are easy to open and are rich in fat and protein. Virtually every bird that visits a feeder eats black-oil seeds.
Striped sunflower seeds are larger and have thicker shells than oil seeds. Cardinals, jays, finches, titmice and woodpeckers favor them.
Hulled sunflower seeds, also called sunflower kernels or sunflower chips, are ideal for most birds because they are pure food -- no waste, no mess, no germination. The extra step of removing the shells, however, increases the cost. Also, hulled sunflower seeds spoil quickly when wet, so they should be placed in a feeder that keeps them dry.
Nyjer is the tiny, black, oil-rich seed -- often wrongly called "thistle." Finches love it, and doves and many native sparrows clean up the spillage beneath finch feeders. It's imported and it's expensive.
Safflower is another oil seed that's acceptable as an ingredient in a seed mix, but it ranks behind sunflower seeds and nuts in preference tests. Cardinals, doves, titmice and house finches eat safflower seeds. Some sources claim that squirrels ignore safflower, though some develop a taste for it.
Millet. Several varieties of millet include white proso, red, golden, German and Japanese. All are eaten by a variety of ground-feeding sparrows, game birds, and waterfowl, but most backyard birds prefer white proso millet. Consequently, it is a major ingredient in many seed mixes. One of millet's best qualities is that its seed coat is hard enough to resist weathering, but not too hard for birds to crack.
Corn. Crows and game birds love whole corn. At backyard feeders whole corn also attracts jays, doves, and red-bellied woodpeckers. Unfortunately, it's also a favorite of pigeons, grackles and squirrels.
Problems
Cracked corn appeals to many backyard birds, but it carries some serious disadvantages. It's dusty, it spoils quickly when wet, and it attracts some undesirable birds. Pigeons, starlings, house sparrows, cowbirds and grackles quickly find feeders filled with cracked corn, so use it sparingly if these birds are a problem.
Milo is often used as a filler seed in cheaper seed mixes. Most birds ignore it. The seed shell is too hard for most birds to crack. Wheat and oats are also common filler ingredients in cheap mixes. Read seed mix labels and avoid blends that contain cereal grains.
Melon Seeds. Though hard to find, melon seeds rival sunflower seeds in popularity with many birds. Begin saving and drying watermelon, cantaloupe and pumpkin seeds and offering them as occasional treats.
Nuts. Nut meats are natural, nutritious, high-energy foods for many birds, including woodpeckers, jays, chickadees, titmice and nuthatches. Many seed packagers now offer mixes that include nuts, but they're more expensive. An option for those on a budget is to turn autumn walks into nut collecting expeditions. It doesn't take long to fill a bag with acorns, hickory nuts or walnuts. Peanuts are a bit less expensive and provide an excellent source of protein and fat for nut lovers.
Suet is animal fat, and woodpeckers, chickadees, titmice and nuthatches love it. I prefer buying pure suet cakes, but those mixed with sunflowers seeds and nuts are great, too. For a copy of an easy-to-make suet recipe, send me a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
sshalaway@aol.com