Bluebirds: What Do They Eat?
If you do not know the answer to the question “what do bluebirds eat,” it might be challenging to attract these beautiful birds to your feeders. Bluebirds are among the most popular species of birds kept in backyards.
Due to the fact that bluebirds overwinter in some portions of their range, the answer to this question changes based on the time of year as well as the fluctuating dietary requirements of the birds throughout the year.
Bluebirds Can Benefit from Natural Foods
Bluebirds belong to the family of birds known as thrushes, which also include American robins, hermit thrushes, solitaires, and fieldfares. These birds also consume the same food items. The following is a list of foods that bluebirds consume, with their consumption varying according to the time of year, the kind of environment they live in, the amount of activity they engage in, and the general availability of
Snails, grubs, caterpillars, and several other types of mollusks and larvae of insects
Other insects, include grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, ants, and spiders.
Those insects that can fly, such as mosquitoes, moths, and termites.
Various types of berries, including sumac, holly, dogwood, pokeweed, and hackberries
Small fruits that grow on trees and vines, such as grapes and cherries
Bluebirds, in general, are classified as insectivores, and, throughout the spring, summer, and early autumn months, their diet consists mostly of various kinds of insects. Birds will eat more fruit when they can’t locate enough insects to eat in the late autumn and winter because low temperatures kill off bug populations. Southern populations of birds will consume more insects throughout the year, but they will still convert to diets focused on fruit when it becomes cold.
What do Robins consume for food? Find Out Which Foods They Prefer!
Watching and Feeding Bluebirds in the Backyard
If you want to attract bluebirds to your yard, you can develop bird-friendly landscaping that contains berry bushes and fruit trees for birds. This is the most effective way to provide food for bluebirds.
At the same time, the use of insecticides and other types of pesticides have to be restricted or entirely avoided so that bluebirds may locate an adequate number of insects to consume, and cobwebs ought to be allowed to remain intact so that spider populations can flourish. While some birds devour the spiders, others make use of the webs to build their nests. Bluebirds are particularly fond of spiders.
There is a wide range of food that may be put into bird feeders in order to entice bluebirds that are hungry. Consider providing the following at the feeders in order to enrich the diet of bluebirds:
- Mealworms, whether they are fresh, frozen, dried, tinned, or roasted.
- Fruit cut into bite-sized pieces, such as apples or pears
- Berries, including blackberries and raspberries, are whole or sliced and served.
- Dried fruits that have been softened, particularly raisins, blueberries, cranberries, and currants
- Suet, ideally cut into bite-size pieces, nuggets, or shredded pieces.
- Hearts of chopped peanuts (no shells)
- Peanut butter, or even some bird dough?
- Sunflower hearts or chip-sized pieces of sunflower
- Eggshells that have been pulverized into fine crumbs are used as a calcium supplement throughout the breeding season.
These meals need to be presented in large, open feeders so that the thrushes may have a sense of comfort and safety while they dine. The ideal way to feed bluebirds is to provide them with trays and dishes rather than narrow ledges or short perches.
However, if you provide a cover over the feeding location, this will help protect the food from precipitation such as rain or snow. It is important to provide live mealworms, in particular, in tiny dishes made of glass or plastic that have smooth edges.
This will prevent the mealworms from escaping the feeder before they are consumed. Even though winter bluebirds aren’t interested in popcorn or cereal strings, they may still stop by a bird feeder garland if it contains cranberries or other types of fruit.
Because many of the items that bluebirds like eating are particularly nutrient-dense, it is better to feed them in very tiny amounts, the kind that the birds can ingest in only one or two days’ time. Because these beautiful thrushes are not often confrontational at bird feeders and will frequently defer to bigger or more active birds, this will prevent bully birds from usurping all of the food and driving away bluebirds.
What the Bluebirds Won’t Consume
It is essential to keep in mind that bluebirds often do not consume the items that are most commonly supplied to backyard birds, such as whole sunflower seeds, millet, and mixed birdseed. Bluebirds don’t generally consume seed, although on occasion they will try sunflower chips if no other food is readily available and they are desperate for anything to eat.
In addition, they do not consume hummingbird nectar, steer clear of entire peanuts, and are not particularly fond of cracked corn. Avoiding these less desired meals at a feeder buffet or splitting feeding stations to give a bluebird-only portion will assist attract bluebirds to the feeders. Another option is to provide a bluebird-only section at each station.
Beyond the Role of Food and Water in Bluebird Attraction
Feeding bluebirds is not always easy, but knowing what foods bluebirds like is the first step in effectively attracting them to your yard. In addition to providing food, providing a spotless birdbath and an appropriately sized bluebird home will persuade bluebirds to visit your yard.
Bird baths that are heated are very important for bluebirds throughout the winter months, and roosting boxes are also helpful at this time of year. It is crucial to have patience while waiting for bluebirds to locate the various delicacies that are hidden in the yard, but adding these additional attractions may turn any yard into a haven for bluebirds.
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