Tips to help birds survive summer and maximize your birdwatching enjoyment

Unknown Friday, August 2, 2013
Although August marks the beginning of the end of summer, there are still plenty of opportunities to help birds and maximize your backyard enjoyment.

Hummingbird Migration
Millions of hummingbirds are preparing to fly back to their winter ranges. Hummingbirds have been migrating between North and Central America for hundreds of years, some traveling thousands of miles each way.
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A high-calorie diet is important to build fat reserves for their trip, so make sure your hummingbird feeders are clean with fresh nectar every few days.

Studies show that most of the hummingbirds you see at your feeders in the fall, are replaced by a new wave of migrants within 24 hours.

Nectar Feeding Tips
Easy to clean and fill, the saucer style hummingbird feeders at Wild Birds Unlimited are the most popular. They have a lifetime guarantee, built in ant moat and don't leak. Bees usually leave these feeders alone but bee guards can be added to the ports to prevent bees, wasps and ants from becoming a nuisance.
Aggressive male hummingbirds can bully others from visiting a feeder. By hanging multiple hummingbird feeders around your yard, you make it difficult for a territorial male to defend the area, allowing other birds to visit the feeders.

Offering Water
Whether they are feeder visitors or not, birds need water for drinking, bathing and preening. Offering a dependable source of water is the simplest and most important step you can take to increase the variety of birds in your yard.
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Birds must be ready to fly at all times, especially during migration. Bathing is a critical part of keeping their feathers in top-flight condition.

Deter Unwanted Visitors 
Male House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) at a lo...Mosquitoes lay their eggs in still water, so open sources of water can cause a potential mosquito problem. Change your water at least every 3 days to prevent the larvae from hatching. Wild Birds Unlimited also has stiff, bristle scrub brushes and professional cleaners like Scoot to clean all of your feeders and baths. Or use one part vinegar to nine parts water solution to disinfect.
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Use safflower seed to keep starlings and grackles from eating all your bird food and crowding your feeders. Safflower is a small, white seed that is high in protein and fat. Most song birds eat safflower, however, starlings, grackles and squirrels typically do not.
There are many ways to keep squirrels away from your existing set up. Using squirrel proof feeders, safflower seed and baffles can prevent squirrels from eating your bird food.
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Visit Wild Birds Unlimited soon because we have everything you and your birds need to make the most of late summer.

Related Articles:
- What is the nectar recipe for hummingbirds? http://goo.gl/MK3AU
- What seeds do wild birds eat? http://goo.gl/MjUCA
- You get more birds if you feed year-round http://goo.gl/IsJKJ
- What kind of bird bath is the best? http://goo.gl/tXz65
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