Finch Bird

Birds Attracted by Different Foods and FeedersSo you get the fancy new bird feeder. You pick up the biggest bag of birdseed the grocery store offers. You put them together and eagerly look out your window. Sure, you’re attracting a few birds here and there but you were really hoping to experience the wide variety of birds roaming  your area rather than just a measly few. So where are the rest of them? Their needs are most likely being met elsewhere in a bigger and better way. How can this be? First of all, birds don’t eat just what’s in those big birdseed bags. Many don’t eat seeds at all. Birds with larger beaks eat seeds since they are more equipped to crack them open, but many smaller birds are more interested in bugs or fish or fruit. So what can you offer to attract the widest variety of birds? Of the seeds out there, Black Oil Sunflower seeds will be appealing because they are easier to open - so birds with small and large beaks can partake. You can also try using suet (or lard) to make a mold of seeds, corn, fruit or nuts. Some birds will like the suet. Some will like the stuff stuck in it. Peanut butter or shortening can be used the same way. Remember the peanut butter pinecones kids make? Same idea.If you’d like to attract certain types of birds, there are definitely specific foods you should offer. Here’s a brief rundown of different foods and some of the birds they will most likely attract:SAFFLOWER - Blue Jay, House Finch, White Breasted NuthatchCRACKED CORN - Blue Jay, Red Winged Blackbird, Brown Headed Cowbird, Cardinal, Nuthatch, Creeper, Quail, Pigeon, Dove, Junco, Towhee, Brown Thrasher, Red Bellied WoodpeckerPEANUTS - Blue Jay, Finch, Indigo Bunting, Cardinal, Black Capped Chickadee, Magpie, Woodpecker, Titmouse, White Breasted Nuthatch, Juncos, TowheeSUET (a.k.a. lard) - Blue Jay, Finch, Wren, Northern Flicker, Pine Siskin, Red Poll, Red Winged Blackbird, Robin, Bluebird, Thrush, Chickadee, Crow, Magpie, Woodpecker, Grosbeak, Bunting, Titmouse, Nuthatch, Creeper, Mockingbird, Thrasher, Kinglet, Warbler, Tanager, Starling, Stellers Jay, Sparrow, Yellow Bellied Sapsuckers, Roadrunner, Junco, Towhee, Baltimore Oriole, Catbird

I really enjoyed the Autumn Bird Walk at Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park. Our guides were very knowledgeable about the different colors, and sounds that defined each species. She reminded us all before we left that to have a rich experience on this tour we need to: touch, smell, Boyce Thompson Arboretum State ParkNeigborhood: SuperiorSuperior, AZ 85273United States of America listen, look closely, and be curious. We all helped each other to find birds on our walk. The people on the tour with me were very friendly and easy to talk too. The Arboretum has a countless amount of plants that survive in the dry climate of the southwestern desert. Some of these plants are cultivated, and some grow naturally here. An example of cultivated plants would be the Eucalyptus Forest. (More than 600 species of Eucalyptus grow in Australia). The Eucalyptus tree comes from Australia. In this section of the walking tour there is a River Red Gum tree that was stuck by lightening, and survived. There are plants from South America, Africa, Asia, and the Mediterranean. Many of these trees were planted here in the 1920’s, they are very large. There are many different gardens for many different types of birds and insects. There are rose, sunflower, cactus, legume and herb gardens in the Arboretum. The textures and shapes of the many plants are very fragrant and pleasing to the eye. Water fountains are put in some of these areas to attract birds when drought season occurs.