Bird feeding

Bird feeding is the activity of feeding wild birds, often by means of a bird feeder. With a recorded history dating to the 6th century, the feeding of wild birds has been encouraged and celebrated in the United Kingdom and United States, with it being the United States' second most popular hobby having National Bird-Feeding Month congressionally degreed in 1994. Various types of food are provided by various methods; certain combinations of food and method of feeding are known to attract certain bird species. Bird feeding is the activity of feeding wild birds, often by means of a bird feeder. With a recorded history dating to the 6th century, the feeding of wild birds has been encouraged and celebrated in the United Kingdom and United States, with it being the United States' second most popular hobby having National Bird-Feeding Month congressionally degreed in 1994. Various types of food are provided by various methods; certain combinations of food and method of feeding are known to attract certain bird species. The feeding of wild birds has been shown to have possible negative as well as positive effects; while a study in Sheffield, England found that the abundance of garden birds increased with levels of bird feeding, multiple reports suggest that bird feeding may have various negative ecological effects and may be detrimental to the birds being fed, including increased risk of predatory action and malnutrition. It has been estimated that American adults spend approx US$3.8 billion a year on food, feeders and related accessories. The British naturalist James Fisher wrote that the first person recorded as feeding wild birds was the 6th-century monk Saint Serf of Fife who tamed a pigeon by feeding it. During the harsh winter of 1890-1891 in the United Kingdom national newspapers asked people to put out food for birds. In 1910 in the United Kingdom, Punch magazine declared that feeding birds was a 'national pastime.' Today in the United Kingdom, most people feed year-round, and enough food is provided to support the calorie requirements of the 10 most common garden bird species. Bird feeding has grown into the United States' second most popular hobby behind gardening. To celebrate the bird feeding hobby, February was named National Bird-Feeding Month by congressional decree in 1994. Bird feeding is typically thought of as an activity of bird enthusiasts. People who feed wild birds often attempt to attract birds to suburban and domestic locations. This requires setting up a feeding station and supplying bird food. The food might include seeds, peanuts, bought food mixes, fat, kitchen scraps and suet. Additionally, a bird bath and grit (sand), that birds store in their crops to help grind food as an aid to digestion, can be provided. Feeding bread to waterfowl at parks, lakes and rivers is also a popular activity. Certain foods tend to attract certain birds. Finches and siskin will be attracted by Niger, and jays love corn. Hummingbirds, sunbirds and other nectivorous birds love nectar. Mixed seed and black oil sunflower seed is favoured by many seed-eating species. In Australia, meat, especially raw beef mince (or ground beef), is commonly fed to wild, carnivorous birds such as Australian magpies and kookaburras. Birds such as white-eyes, barbets, and some thrushes will take 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 kites are fed chicken and table scraps in gardens. Garden 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.