Types of Bird Feeders for Backyard Wild Birds

Although it appears that there are a plethora of different types of feeders that can be used for backyard wild birds they really fall into a couple of categories. The most common are:

•  Hopper Feeders
•  Fly Through Feeders
•  Squirrel Proof Feeders
•  Caged Feeders
•  Ranch Feeders
•  Nectar Feeders
•  Mealworm Feeders

In this post we are just going to focus on 3 types. The hopper feeder, fly-through feeder, and squirrel proof feeder.

FLY THROUGH WILD BIRD FEEDER

Fly through wild bird feeders are designed for all birds. From the smallest chickadee to the largest crow. These types of feeders are perfect for the nervous birds that don't stop and feed. Birds like the white breasted nuthatch will not sit at the feeder and eat. That bird is going to land, grab a seed and take off immediately. However the larger birds like the mourning dove will sit on the feeders all day. 

Fly through feeders are basically a platform feeder with a roof. The come in many styles. The one above is handmade by the Amish and is designed as a "covered bridge." This particular model is mounted on a 4x4 wooden pole. The bottom of this unit has a prebuilt flange that fits nicely on the post. 

Some fly through feeders are hung on a shepherds hook, they can be round and small with a roof. They all have the same characteristic which is the birds can sit anywhere on the perch or in the feeder and consume the food that rests in the middle. 

The one disadvantage of a fly through feeder is that it typically has to be filled everyday. The reason is they don't hold a lot of bird seed and they attract a tremendous amount and variety of birds to the feeding station.

HOPPER FEEDERS

Hopper feeders get their name from the large acrylic seed holders that sit in the middle of the units. Gravity allows the seeds to drop from the middle of the unit onto each side of the bird feeder. These hoppers have the ability to hold pounds of seed to handle the wild bird's appetites' for days. They come in many shapes but they all have a couple of typical characteristics:

1.  Large acrylic hopper seed holder in the middle of unit.
2.  The hoppers tend to be set to handle all blended or mixed types of wild bird seeds.
3.  Large perch that allows all birds of all sizes to land and eat. In the A&J Six Sided Copper Feeder above the perch is the copper bar running around the entire bottom of the unit.
4. Most units can be hung from a shepherds hook. Some like the one above are meant to make a statement in your backyard. This particular hopper sits on top of a 4x4 post with a white vinyl sleeve placed over the wooden post to finish off the look.

Squirrel Proof Feeders

Here in NE Atlanta we are inundated with squirrels. With that in mind, at our sister business the Wild Bird Center of Johns Creek, we spend a lot of time talking about them. How do you keep squirrels off your bird feeder? Well actually there are several ways to hold the squirrels back. For the purposes of this post I want to focus on the Squirrel Buster Plus. 

The Squirrel Buster Plus works by simply denying the squirrels any chance of getting to the wild bird seed. In fact these types of units work so well we actually want the squirrels to get on them. When the squirrel attempts to get the seed his/her own weight forces the seed port to close. What ends up happening is they just get frustrated and... they eventually give up! Bottom line is Squirrel Busters work!

The one pictured above is a large feeder that holds 3.5 lbs of mixed wild bird seed. It's perch, which is the round green ring at the bottom, can handle any size bird. It is also adjustable. So if your goal is to keeps squirrels and large birds like crows out of the seed you can lighten the spring tension. 

Disadvantage of this type of feeder? Squirrel Busters and squirrel proof feeders in general are very utilitarian in appearance. You're not going to find a pretty coppertop model or one shaped like a covered bridge. They may not make a social  "statement" in your beautiful backyard but they will save you a ton of money on wild bird seed.

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About the Author: David Peterson is the owner of the Best Nest of Georgia, Inc. which includes in its corporate family a retail store in NE Atlanta called the Wild Bird Center of Johns Creek Georgia. The Wild Bird Center focuses on bringing nature to your backyard using bird seed, bird feeders, mealworms, and bird houses to attract wild birds to your yard. You can reach the Wild Bird Center at 770-418-1990 or by contacting David via email: david@thebestnest.net