Helping Your Birds this Fall

Published On: September 26, 2024By Dan Hinnebusch, Ornithologist at Wild Birds Unlimited

This is a challenging time of year for your birds. Many are recovering from the physiological demands of laying eggs, defending a territory, feeding hungry nestlings, and molting to replace their feathers. Those nestlings that hatched this year are now mostly on their own, searching for their own food and safety as the evenings start to get cooler. Some birds are undertaking epic migrations to reach warmer climates and escape the coming winter. Birds like the Blue Jay in the photo above are already caching – hiding excess food so they can find it again during a time of need.

Here are some tips on how you can help birds thrive this fall:

Provide high-quality bird food. This time of year, focus on bird foods that are high in protein and fat, like Sunflower Seeds, Peanuts, Suet, Bark Butter, and Bark Butter Bits.
Make windows safer. This is a particularly dangerous time of year for birds colliding with windows. Many of the birds in our area are migrants who may not be familiar with your yard. Stop by the store to see options available to make your windows more visible to the birds.
Turn off the lights. Exterior lighting can be a dangerous distraction for migrating birds, which often rely on the natural lights of the night sky for navigation.
Reduce pesticide use. Most pesticides are not safe for birds. Some directly kill birds, while others kill birds when they eat insects that have been exposed to pesticides. Even if birds never come into contact with the pesticide, they are harmed because pesticides kill the insects they need for food.
Keep cats indoors. Outdoor cats kill billions of birds annually in the United States alone. Migrants and young birds are particularly vulnerable.
Drink bird-friendly coffee. Many of the birds migrating through your yard are on their way to the Tropics. By drinking Smithsonian-certified Bird Friendly coffee, you can ensure that some high quality habitat is available to them this winter.
Reduce lawn – use native plants. Native plants support healthy populations of the insects needed by many of your birds. You might not be able to make a big change in your yard, but every native plant you add will continue to benefit your birds for years to come.
Keep your leaf litter. Many of the caterpillars that your birds will rely on next year spend the winter in the leaves that fall from your trees. Whenever possible, leave leaves where they fall. If you rake up your leaves, find a place in your yard to keep them so that nesting birds will find a lot to eat in the spring.