Offering your birds acorns
If you have an oak tree in your yard or neighborhood, you have a ready source of much needed protein for your feeder birds this winter. Fill your pockets or a paper bag while out on a walk. Acorns can be collected and stored in a cool, dry place throughout the winter. Keep them in a rodent-proof container and you will have a very cost-effective, nutritional snack for your winter visitors.
Nuts have a high fat content, which is important to bids in the winter, especially insect eating birds which have a higher metabolism. Nuts, fruits, berries and oils all will attract a diverse number of birds to your feeders that may not normally come for the seed offered at most feeders. These specialty foods can be very expensive, however. Unless you have an oak tree handy, that is!
To prepare the acorns, simply place a handful in an old sock and tie it off. Hammer the acorns to crack the shell and break up the meat inside. You can place the acorns on a platform feeder for nut-loving birds such as woodpeckers and jays. The pieces can also be mixed with a homemade suet.
Birds can be wary of new foods, however, so do not be surprised if the new offering sits for a couple of days. Scatter the acorns in amongst the seeds you normally place in your platform or ground feeder so that the birds will be more likely to sample them. Once they discover this tasty treat, they will likely be back for more!
Of course, you can also lay out a few whole acorns for the squirrels in your yard. Ours tend to eat the sunflower seed at the feeder and run off with corn cobs and acorns to hide in the lilac bush nearby. Watch your squirrels carefully at this time of the year, and you will likely find several spots where they keep their stores.
birding, backyard birding, birdwatching, acorn
October 3rd, 2007 at 4:58 am
[...] a great post on birds and acorns! : http://www.backyardbirdingblog.com/offering-your-birds-acorns/ Did You Enjoy this Post? Subscribe to We Heart Cats. It’s Free! « Back Home Posted in [...]
October 3rd, 2007 at 8:36 pm
Great suggestion, Dana. Maybe if I stockpile enough acorns, the squirrels will stay out of the other feeders.
October 4th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
We finally got our feeders up this week and filled them, much to the joy of the neighborhood critters. We have determined at this point in time, we will not have much seed left on the ground to deal with as we now have a chipmunk coming to visit us and cleaning up the fallen seeds, along with the squirrel and the mourning doves, lol! I now know that when we go on our walks & hikes, the children will be in charge of acorn collecting! One thing, if you are going to store them for a bit, put them in a plastic baggy in the freezer - it kills off the worms/bugs that are living in them - something I really do not want to introduce into our home.
October 4th, 2007 at 11:13 pm
Great idea, Melisa! I hadn’t thought of putting them in the freezer. We have large tubs we keep in the laundry room (now that the raccoons finally figured out how to get into them!). I doubt we will be collecting so many that they won’t fit in the freezer, though.
October 6th, 2007 at 9:03 am
[...] them for your birds. You can also collect nuts from the trees in your neighborhood, including acorns and [...]
October 22nd, 2007 at 6:09 am
[...] A basket of collected pine cones, acorns and walnuts set near a step welcomes the season and your neighborhood squirrels. Woodpeckers and other insect eating birds might appreciate a hanging dish of cracked nuts. [...]
November 12th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
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