If you’re lucky enough to have blackbirds in your garden, experts are urging you to leave out four specific food items to help them thrive during the crucial breeding season.
Blackbirds are among the most common birds in the UK, with an estimated six million breeding pairs often spotted in gardens nationwide. Unlike some birds, blackbirds stick around during the chilly winter months, meaning they need a constant food supply to keep them going.
Now that spring is finally here, these feathered friends are returning to our gardens in even larger numbers as breeding season approaches. Garden and wildlife experts are encouraging Brits to lend a hand by leaving out food for these birds.
Blackbirds are partial to fruit, berries, seeds and oats. You can assist them by scattering uncooked oats (like porridge oats), dog food, flaked maize or fat balls on the ground or a flat bird table (as long as it’s cleaned regularly).
This is because blackbirds are too large to feed from upright feeders, reports the Express. Garden experts Home and Roost.co.uk suggest that you can leave out mealworms for blackbirds, but if you don’t have that specialist food on hand, you can use items from your kitchen instead – including uncooked porridge, dried fruit and even dog food.
Home and Roost says: “Meaty dog food. This is a great one for anyone too squeamish to deal with mealworms. While blackbirds prefer to feed their young a natural diet, mainly worms and insects, they will supplement dog food if you offer it.”
While most of us probably don’t have a good supply of mealworms at home, pet owners will have dog food readily on hand and if not, a cheap tin of dog food next time you’re shopping can be saved for your garden, and will be cheaper than buying specialist bird foods.
But blackbirds need the food to be put out on a flat feeder or on the ground as they are too big to feed from hanging feeders.
Just be sure to keep your bird table cleaned regularly if it’s flat. This is because the RSPB has recently pulled bird tables from sale over fears they could be spreading diseases, especially over winter.
It urged gardeners to make sure tables are cleaned with hot soapy water regularly to avoid the risks while the charity conducts research on how flat feeders could be affecting bird populations.
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