How to Get Birds to Come to Your Window Feeder

Putting up a window feeder is a great way to bring beautiful birds right up to your home where you can observe them easily But getting those timid creatures to approach the feeder can take some effort. With the right techniques, you’ll soon have a lively flock dining at your window Follow these tips to attract more birds to your window feeder.

Choose a Good Location

Birds feel safest when they have quick access to shelter. Mount the feeder within a few feet of trees, shrubs, or other cover. This allows them to dart to safety if threatened. Avoid wide open spaces. You want them to feel protected, not exposed.

Position the feeder where you can view it through a window Kitchens, living rooms, and home offices often work well Make sure it’s not right next to the glass or birds may fly into it. Allow at least 3 feet between the feeder and window.

Place it at eye level. Sitting inside where you’ll observe the birds, hold your hand up to approximate the height you want. About 5-6 feet high is ideal for most species

Offer Preferred Foods

Different birds have different tastes. Sunflower seeds attract chickadees, nuthatches, finches, and many others. Nyjer thistle seed brings in goldfinches and pine siskins. Suet satisfies woodpeckers, wrens, and titmice.

You could offer a mix, but it’s better to serve one food at a time. This prevents birds from tossing aside what they don’t want. Start with black oil sunflower seeds to draw a diversity of species. Once your feeder gets traffic, try another food to see who it interests.

Supply fresh food often. Discard any that gets wet, sprouts, or looks moldy. Empty the feeder and clean it every two weeks. Dirty feeders can spread disease between birds.

Add a Water Source

Birds need to drink and bathe. Situate a shallow bird bath or dripper fountain within view of the feeder. The sound of moving water is enticing. Change the water daily so it stays clean for bathing and drinking.

Alternatively, install a mister above the feeder. Turn it on for a few minutes periodically to lightly shower visiting birds. The motion and moisture will grab their attention.

Use Strategic Placement

It’s tempting to fill the feeder right away, but don’t. First, scatter seeds on the ground below it. The bits will catch the eyes of passing birds. Once they find this food source, they’re likely to check out the nearby feeder.

After a number of birds start using your setup regularly, try moving the feeder to a different window. Again, sprinkle some seeds below it as an introduction. This can bring in new avian visitors.

Be Patient

It takes time for birds to discover and grow accustomed to new feeders. Don’t expect a busy crowd right away. Check the feeder at various times of day to see who is stopping by. Once established, activity will pick up, especially at dawn and dusk.

Observe from a distance inside your home. Avoid tapping on windows or making sudden movements as this can startle birds away. Let them become comfortable feeding while you watch discreetly.

Discourage Pests

Squirrels, raccoons, and bears love bird food too. Stop them from stealing the bird seed with these deterrents:

• Suspend the feeder from a pole with a built-in baffle or place it on a pole with a baffle below. The barriers prevent climbing.

• Use feeders with weight sensitive perches that close access to the food when heavier animals like squirrels try to get in.

• Put a dome over the feeder to block large pests. Birds can still get in through openings at the bottom.

• Try a chili pepper bird seed additive. Birds don’t taste the heat but squirrels hate it.

• Install feeders with electric shock features (safe for birds) triggered by pests trying to access the food.

• Mount greased poles or roller bars that climbing animals can’t attach to.

• Sprinkle ground cayenne pepper or chili powder around your set up. The spice irritates paws. Reapply after rain.

Try Birdcalls and Water Sounds

Auditory tactics can bolster visual cues in attracting birds. Hang a birdcall recorder in a tree near the feeder. When species hear calls of their own kind, they often fly in to investigate and join them. Recorders mimic chickadees, goldfinches, jays, and more.

Add the pleasant sound of moving water. Position a birdbath mister, fountain, or dripper where birds at the feeder can hear the aquatic sounds. This provides additional audio enticement.

Offer Nesting Materials

Birds that nest in your yard are more likely to visit your feeder often. Provide natural materials they use to build homes like hair, feathers, moss, grass clippings, twigs, and cotton balls.

You can also install bird houses suited for species you want to attract. Locate them within view of the feeder so the parents can conveniently feed hatchlings.

Open the View

While birds prefer feeders near cover, too much foliage can obstruct the view. Prune back overgrown branches around the feeder so birds can better spot it.

Trim growth touching or partially obscuring windows looking out on the feeder as well. Unobstructed visibility and clear flight paths improve usage.

Eliminate Collisions

Birds may crash into windows near feeders as they fly toward them. To prevent harm, apply decals, tape, or clings that reflect ultraviolet sunlight. These make the glass visible to birds so they avoid it.

There are many decorative decal products perfect for windows with feeders outside them. Or create your own grid pattern using clings, tape, or string spaced closely across the glass.

Pick the Right Feeder

Use feeders designed for the viewing advantage of windows:

• Window clings: These stick on the outside of glass and feeders hang from them. Birds come right up to the window to eat.

• Tray mounts: These allow you to mount a tray or hopper feeder right against the window using suction cups/anchors.

• Window tubes: Clear plastic tubes mount to the glass vertically or horizontally and let birds feed at the window.

• Window hoppers: Specialty hopper feeders attach to window glass without blocking sight lines.

Offer Shelter

While eating at an exposed window feeder, birds still need quick shelter access. Provide this by planting shrubs or vines along the house under the feeder windows. Tall grass and brush piles also supply escape coverage.

You can add small shelters too. Position boxes or woven basket covers near the feeders so birds can hunker down inside. Even a lean-to roof above the feeder helps them feel protected.

Avoid Spooking Birds

Certain human actions may startle birds from window feeding stations:

• Stay back from the windows when watching so you don’t distract them.

• Don’t put feeders on windows where pets gaze out and paw at the glass.

• Reduce window reflections that scare birds away. Draw blinds or curtains when needed.

• Never tap the glass. The birds may perceive this as a threat and not return.

• Walk slowly and talk softly near windows where birds are feeding.

With the right setup and care, you’ll soon enjoy a busy bird cafe right on your windows. A diversity of beautiful feathered friends will provide natural entertainment and serenity. Just be patient, avoid scaring them off, and keep their feeders full. With a welcoming habitat, the birds will come.

Summary of Tips

• Place feeder near protective cover

• Situate within 3 feet of viewing window

• Offer preferred foods like sunflower seeds

• Add a ground-level water source

• Start by scattering seeds below feeder

• Wait for birds to discover and adjust to feeder

• Deter squirrels and other pests from stealing the food

• Use birdcalls and water sounds to attract birds

• Provide nesting materials

• Open sight lines by pruning vegetation

• Apply window decals or tape to prevent collisions

• Choose a window mount, cling, or tube feeder

• Supply adjacent shelter like shrubs or vine plants

• Avoid tapping windows or startling birds