For the Birds Nature Shop, Canada

About Us

Shipping

Site Map

Resources

Newsletter

Testimonials

Home

Cart & Checkout

My Wish List Customer Service

Wild Bird Feeding Tips

Wild birds complement their natural diet with supplements that we offer at our birdfeeders. To attract wild birds to your backyard or property, you need to create a suitable habitat. Creating a habitat means that you’ll need to provide an environment that meets their needs for shelter, food and water.

Shelter

Plant evergreen trees and shrubs
Leave fallen trees and brush piles
Provide a nesting box specific to the bird. In winter, provide roost boxes.

Food

Plant Trees, Shrubs and Wildflowers that produce berries, cones and seeds
Fill birdfeeders with Black oil sunflower and Nyjer seeds. Use good quality mixed seed, there should be no wheat or milo.
Store bird seed in airtight containers in a cool, dry place. Throw away moldy seed and seed more than 9 months old. Seeds contain oils that can go rancid.
Clean bird feeders monthly with 1 part bleach, 9 parts water. Or 50/50 white vinegar and water. Dry birdfeeders thoroughly before refilling.
Clean up spent shells and old seed under birdfeeders to avoid moulds and thwart disease.
Hang bird feeders within 10 feet of trees or shrubs so birds can duck for cover if danger approaches, like a cat or hawk.

Water

Put out a shallow dish or bird bath (2 inch maximum depth) filled with water that you change weekly. In the winter use lukewarm water that you replace when it freezes or use a heated bird bath or bird bath heater / de-icer. Change water every few days.

Hummingbird Feeding Tips

Hang your hummingbird feeder in a shady or partly shady location to avoid accelerating the fermentation of the hummingbird nectar. Be sure to change hummingbird nectar every three to five days to prevent mold and deadly fermentation. Hummingbird feeders should be cleaned at least once a week with hot water and a bottle brush. Don't use soap or a detergent. You can also clean this type of feeder by filling it with a dilute bleach (10 parts water to 1 part chlorine bleach) solution, then rinsing it very thoroughly.

Hummingird Food / Nectar Recipe: To make sugar solution for hummingbirds, add one part sugar to four parts boiling water (boil the water before measuring, because some water will evaporate away in the process). When the mixture is cool it is ready for use. You can store extra sugar water in your refrigerator for up to one week, but left longer it may become moldy.

NEVER use honey in hummingbird food. It ferments easily and readily grows mold that can be dangerous—even fatal—to hummingbirds. Don't add red food coloring to the sugar solution—it is unnecessary and possibly harmful to the birds. Red portals on the feeder, or even a red ribbon on top, will attract the hummingbirds just as well.

Davis Instruments Weather Station Comparison Help

Click here for comparison charts to help you choose which weather station is best for your needs.

Some of our favourite sites and organizations include:

Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada:

Nova Scotia Bird Society
Nova Scotia Rare Bird Alert
Birding Sites of Nova Scotia
Federation of Nova Scotia Naturalists

Nova Scotia Osprey Cam

Maritimes Breeding Bird Atlas Project

Mahone Bay Area Chamber of Commerce

Canada:
Bird Studies Canada

eBird Canada

Boreal Songbird Initiative

Nature Conservancy of Canada