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Bluebirds (Backyard Bird Feeding Guides)
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About Bluebirds
Product Description Your Backyard Feeding Guide to Bluebirds The Eastern Bluebird’s blend of sky blue and rusty orange is a happy sprinkle of color in any yard or garden. Easily tamed and full of personality, bluebirds are like welcomed friends. Learn from acclaimed naturalist Stan Tekiela what foods to provide to keep bluebirds coming back and which feeders they prefer and why. Find out how to make your yard into a habitat they will visit, and enjoy bluebird photographs, trivia and quick tips. This handy book is your all-in-one guide to attracting and feeding bluebirds. About the Author Naturalist, wildlife photographer and writer Stan Tekiela is the author of more than 165 field guides, nature books, children’s books, wildlife audio CDs, puzzles and playing cards, presenting many species of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, trees, wildflowers and cacti in the United States. With a Bachelor of Science degree in Natural History from the University of Minnesota and as an active professional naturalist for more than 25 years, Stan studies and photographs wildlife throughout the United States and Canada. He has received various national and regional awards for his books and photographs. Also a well-known columnist and radio personality, his syndicated column appears in more than 25 newspapers and his wildlife programs are broadcast on a number of Midwest radio stations. Stan can be followed on Facebook and Twitter. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Feeding Bluebirds Bluebirds eat mainly insects in spring and summer, but they also eat fresh and dried fruit. In late summer, when insects are less plentiful, they eat fresh fruit on shrubs, vines and trees, including dogwood, mulberry, sumac, hackberry, raspberry, wild grape, holly, eastern red cedar, pokeweed and buckthorn. In fall and early winter, they enjoy the dried fruit left from the summer months. Bluebirds normally eat insects on or near the ground. They sit on branches and dart out to snatch bugs. They like grasshoppers, caterpillars and other large insects. I have even seen some catch Chorus Frogs (3/4-inch aquatic frogs) to eat and also to feed to their young. The best way to attract bluebirds is with mealworms. Live mealworms are sold in plastic tub-like containers and should be stored in the refrigerator, where they can remain fresh for 1–2 months. A single bluebird can eat dozens of mealworms each day, so purchasing them in the hundreds or thousands is recommended. Mealworms also are sold dried in plastic bag-like packages. This is the most economical way to buy them, and you can purchase thousands at a time. Some bluebirds, however, don’t feed on mealworms unless they are alive and moving. You can start feeding your bluebirds with live mealworms, and after they get into a routine of visiting your feeder, you can switch to the dried mealworms. Another surefire way to get bluebirds into your yard is to put out feeders with fresh or dried fruit. Raisins are a popular choice, as are dried cranberries. Small pieces of apple or banana also work. You can offer a selection of fruits in a dish with drainage holes in the bottom. Suet feeders will attract bluebirds in early spring before insects become plentiful. Suet and insects are both a great source of protein. Some people crumble small bits of suet into their mealworm or fruit feeder. Many suet cakes come packed with insects. These make tasty and nutritious offerings for bluebirds. Sunflower hearts are also a good source of nutrition for bluebirds when other food sources are scarce. The hearts are just the interior meat of sunflower seeds. Many species of birds will also be attracted to this food, and it can be offered in many standard seed feeders. If you have bluebirds spending the winter in your area, you might want to consider offering these foods to help them eat hardily through the season. Live & Dried Mealworms Mealworms: Mealworms are the worm-like larvae of
