Should You Increase Bird Feed In Autumn?

It's autumn which means the days are getting colder, the nights are getting longer, and food supplies are starting to dwindle for our feathered friends.

If this is the case, should you increase bird feed in autumn?

Do Birds Need Feeding In Autumn?

Some people believe that birds don’t need feeding in autumn, but this isn’t necessarily true. Whilst a lot of plants and trees tend to bear fruit in autumn, food is always tricky to find for our feathered friends, no matter what the weather.

Birds will always need to find food and you helping to feed them won’t ever be a hindrance to them. Even if there is plenty of food around, birds will always be grateful for a little more food here and there, especially as the weather gets colder and they need to start preparing for their harsher colder months.

You can read more debunked myths about feeding the birds here.

Should You Increase Bird Feed In Autumn?

As the weather gets colder, birds need to start preparing for the colder months ahead. There are plenty of reasons birds might need to feed in these colder months.

A lot of birds tend to migrate. This means they are flying to a country or location with a warmer climate so that they don’t have to face the frosty cold winters we have here in Britain. Even if they are going to a warmer place, they will still need to build up their energy in order to make the trip.

These flights can be long and difficult, especially for some of our smaller garden birds that aren’t used to flying for long periods of time. They will need to store up as much energy as possible so it’s a good idea to leave out food that is high in protein so that they can have the energy they need to make the long difficult journey.

Food that is high in protein for birds’ includes sunflower seeds or other bird seeds mixes.

Not all birds migrate, a lot of garden birds in Britain tend to stay all through the cold months. In some cases, like with the Robin Red Breast, birds will come to Britain from much colder countries and spend the winter here.

As the weather can get quite cold in the hight of winter, it's important that the birds that visit your garden are able to store up good fats that will help keep them warm.

Foods that contain these good healthy fats include any nuts, but especially peanuts, and fatty food like suet balls and pellets.

What Should I Feed The Birds In Autumn?

Birds have very versatile and very adaptable diets but you should still be careful when deciding what to feed them.  Here at Kenedy Wild Bird Feed, all of the bird food is not only safe for birds to eat but also provides them with the much-needed nutrients they need to survive. Some of our specially designed bird feed includes:

Mixed Birdseed

We sell a range of mixed birds seeds with every mix specially designed to either suit a particular bird or help with a particular part of the bird's diet.

Mealworms For Birds

We sell both dried and live mealworms for birds. We also sell a specially designed mealworm bird feeder.

Peanuts For Birds

The peanuts we sell for birds are different from the ones you find in supermarkets. It’s important you only feed birds food that has been tested so that is it not harmful to them. We have a variety of peanuts for birds including peanuts both with and without shells.

Plain Wild Bird Seeds

We get a variety of different seeds from a range of different plants and food mixes including maize, oats and raisins.

Suet For Birds

Suet is a great alternative to dry foods. Here at Kennedy Wild Bird Feed we have a variety of different suet products like suet pellets, fat balls and filled coconut shells.

Sunflower Seeds For Birds

Sunflower seeds are possibly the best thing you possibly feed to your garden birds. They are full of all the nutrients and good fats birds need to stay healthy. We have sunflower hearts, sunflower heart chips and black sunflower seeds.

If you want to know more about how you can help the wildlife in your garden this autumn then check out our blog full of Autumn Wildlife Care Tips!