The Birds and The Feeds
Want to attract the best variety of “tenants” to your Bird House? In addition to the kind of feeding you choose to provide, Ground or Feeder, the kind of seed you provide attracts a certain kind of bird.
Most ground-feeding birds prefer millet and other seed such as sunflower. Most birds that feed at an elevated feeder prefer a variety of larger sees including oil and striped sunflower, safflower and sunflower chips.
Use this Guide to determine which seeds are preferred by specific birds!
OIL SUNFLOWER
The Oil Sunflower is the following species favorite seed:
- Black-capped Chickadee
- Cassin’s Finch
- Evening Grosbeak
- House Finch
- Mountain Chickadee
- Pygmy Nuthatch
- Red-Breasted Nuthatch
- White Breasted Nuthatch
- White Crowned Sparrow
The Oil Sunflower also attracts the following species:
- Blue Jay
- Dark-Eyed Junco
- Grackel
- Goldfinch
- House Sparrow
- Mourning Dove
- Pin Siskin
- Red-Winged Blackbird
- Song Sparrow
- Steller’s Jay
- Woodpecker
STRIPED SUNFLOWER
The Striped Sunflower is the following species favorite seed:
- Blue Jay
- Steller’s Jay
- Woodpecker
The Striped Sunflower also attracts the following species:
- Black-Capped Chickadee
- Cassins’s Finch
- Evening Grosbeak
- Grackle
- House Finch
- Mountain Chickadee
- Pygmy Nuthatch
- Red-Breasted Nuthatch
- White Breasted Nuthatch
- White Crowned Sparrow
SUNFLOWER CHIPS
Sunflower Chips are the following species favorite seed:
- Pine Siskin
Sunflower Chips also attract the following species:
- Black-capped Chickadee
- Brown-headed Cowbird
- Goldfinh
- Grackle House Finch
- Mountain Chickadee
- Mourning Dove
- Red-Winged Blackbird
SAFFLOWER
Safflower attracts the following species:
- Black-Capped Chickadee
- Cassins’s Finch
- Evening Grosbeak
- Grackle
- House Finch
- Mountain Chickadee
- Pygmy Nuthatch
- Red-Breasted Nuthatch
- White Breasted Nuthatch
- White Crowned Sparrow
THISTLE
Thistle is the following species favorite seed:
- Pine Siskin
- Goldfinch
Thistle also attract the following species:
- Dark-Eyed Junco
- House Finch
- House Sparrow
- Mourning Dove
- Song Sparrow
PEANUTS IN THE SHELL
Peanuts in the shell attract the following species:
- Blue Jay
- Steller’s Jay
- Flickers
SHELLED PEANUTS
Shelled Peanuts are the following species favorite seed:
- Blue Jay
- Steller’s Jay
Shelled Peanuts also attract the following species:
- Black-Capped Chickadee
- Clark’s Nutcracker
- House Sparrow
- Magpie
- Mountain Chickadee
- Pygmy Nuthatch
- Red-Breasted Nuthatch
- White-Breasted Nuthatch
- Woodpecker
WHITE MILLET
White Millet the following species favorite seed:
- Brown-Headed Cowbird
- Dark-Eyed Junco
- House Sparrow
- Lazuli Bunting
- Mourning Dove
- Song Sparrow
- Tree Sparrow
White Millet also attracts the following species:
- Pine Siskin
- Red-Winged Blackbird
- White-Crowned Sparrow
CHOPPED CORN
Chopped Corn also attracts the following species:
- Clark’s Nutcracker
- Dark-Eyed Junco
- Grackle
- House Sparrow
- Magpie
- Mournig Dove
- Red-Winged Blackbird
- Rock Dove
- Starling
- Steller’s Jay
- Tree Sparrow
- Western Bluebird
We hope this guide helps you attract a larger variety of “tenants” to your backyard, and you get to enjoy all of Colorado’s beautiful bird species!