Editing Bird feeding (section)

== Types ==
{{See also|Bird food}}
[[File:Bird feeding - Margaret Island.jpg|thumb|Seabird feeding]]
Certain [[Bird food|foods]] tend to attract certain birds.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nwf.org/News-and-Magazines/National-Wildlife/Birds/Archives/2010/Bird-seeds.aspx |title="Which Bird Seeds are Best?" from ''National Wildlife'' Magazine 1/31/2010 |publisher=Nwf.org |date=2011-10-26 |access-date=2011-11-15}}</ref> [[Finch]]es and [[siskin]] are attracted by [[Guizotia abyssinica|niger]] (''nyger'' or ''nyjer''),<ref name="BBC Science & Nature">{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/wildbritain/gardenwildlife/myspace/content.shtml?25 |title=BBC Science & Nature UK Wildlife – Bird Feeders |publisher=[[BBC]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060208022030/https://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/wildbritain/gardenwildlife/myspace/content.shtml?25 |archive-date=February 8, 2006 |access-date=January 1, 2023}}</ref> and [[jay]]s prefer [[maize]]. [[Hummingbird]]s, [[sunbird]]s and other [[nectivorous]] birds seek [[nectar]]. [[File:Hummingbirds reaching out to a feeder.jpg|thumb|Hummingbirds encircling a feeder with nectar]] Mixed seed and black-oil sunflower seed is favoured by many seed-eating species due to its high fat content and thin casing. In Australia, meat, especially raw beef mince (or ground beef), is commonly fed to wild carnivorous birds such as [[Australian magpie]]s and [[kookaburras]].
<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Reynolds |first1=S James |last2=Galbraith |first2=Josie A |last3=Smith |first3=Jennifer A |last4=Jones |first4=Darryl N |date=2017 |title=Garden Bird Feeding: Insights and Prospects from a North-South Comparison of This Global Urban Phenomenon |journal=Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |volume=5 |doi=10.3389/fevo.2017.00024 |doi-access=free |hdl=10072/356102 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Birds such as [[white-eye]]s, [[Lybiidae|barbets]], and certain [[Thrush (bird)|thrushes]] will consume fresh and cut fruit. Different feeders can be purchased specialized for different species. It is not only small birds that are attracted by bird feeding. In some urban areas of the UK, [[red kite]]s are fed chicken and table scraps in gardens.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Orros|first1=Melanie E.|last2=Fellowes|first2=Mark D. E.|date=2014-04-03|title=Supplementary feeding of the reintroduced Red Kite Milvus milvus in UK gardens|journal=Bird Study|volume=61|issue=2|pages=260–263|doi=10.1080/00063657.2014.885491|bibcode=2014BirdS..61..260O |s2cid=86655293 |issn=0006-3657|url=http://centaur.reading.ac.uk/35674/1/00063657.2014.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Orros|first1=Melanie E.|last2=Fellowes|first2=Mark D. E.|date=2015-04-01|title=Widespread supplementary feeding in domestic gardens explains the return of reintroduced Red Kites Milvus milvus to an urban area|journal=Ibis|language=en|volume=157|issue=2|pages=230–238|doi=10.1111/ibi.12237|pmid=25937644|issn=1474-919X|pmc=4409027}}</ref>

Most common birds can be fed using peanuts, seed, coconut (but never [[desiccated coconut]]) or fat (but not oils that are liquid at room temperature) using a variety of feeders.<ref name="BBC Science & Nature"/>

[[File:Bird feeding in rural Oklahoma.jpg|thumb|Feeding wild birds in rural Oklahoma.]]

After a station is established, it can take some weeks for birds to discover and start using it.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-03-11 |title=How Long Does It Take For Birds To Find A Bird Feeder? |url=https://www.birdinformer.com/how-long-does-it-take-for-birds-to-find-a-bird-feeder/ |access-date=2022-12-21 |website=Bird Informer |language=en-US}}</ref> This is particularly true if the feeding station is the first one in an area or (in cold-winter areas) if the station is being established in spring when natural sources of food are plentiful. Food, particularly unshelled foods, such as thistle seed and suet, left uneaten for too long may spoil.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-08-13 |title=How Food Spoils |url=https://food.unl.edu/how-food-spoils |access-date=2022-12-21 |website=UNL Food |language=en}}</ref> Birds also require a source of drinking water and a birdbath can attract birds as a feeding station.

In North America, suet can be used to attract a variety of birds that may not reliably visit a bird feeder containing seeds. In Texas, all common species of [[woodpecker]]s will use a suet feeder year-round. {{Cn|date=December 2022}} In winter, [[yellow-rumped warbler|yellow-rumped]] and [[orange-crowned warbler|orange-crowned]] warblers, [[golden-crowned kinglet]]s and [[northern flicker]]s could visit. In spring, [[northern oriole]] and other warblers may also visit.{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}