The month of February was designated National Bird Feeding Month by an Illinois congressman, John Porter. In 1994, he read a resolution in to the Congressional Record. The month is an ideal time for promoting and enjoying the experience of wild bird feeding. The theme for 2025 is “Be a hero—#FeedTheBirds”

Here’s how you can participate, according to the National Bird Feeding Month website:

• Choose nutritious feeder foods
  • Keep your feeder full of wild bird food blends that contain energy-rich foods like sunflower seeds and nuts to help sustain birds’ energy.
• Choose energy-rich foods
  • Hang a suet feeder in your yard and offer suet cakes blended with high-energy sunflower and nuts to help birds stay warm.
• Offer water
  • Consider a heated birdbath so birds can have access to a fresh source of water during freezing temperatures.
• Offer safety
  • Provide nest boxes during cold seasons so wild birds have a place to shelter and stay warm.

All of us at All Seasons Wild Bird Store welcome you to help spread awareness of bird feeding by inviting your friends and family to participate in National Bird-Feeding Month. Ask any of our local backyard birding experts for suggestions!

‘‘I would like to recognize February, one of the most difficult months in the United States for wild birds, as National Bird-Feeding Month. During this month, individuals are encouraged to provide food, water, and shelter to help wild birds survive. This assistance benefits the environment by supplementing the wild bird’s natural diet of weed seeds and insects. Currently, one third of the U.S. adult population feeds wild birds in their backyards.

 

In addition, Mr. Speaker, backyard bird feeding is an entertaining, educational, and inexpensive pastime enjoyed by children and adults. Bird feeding provides a needed break from today’s frantic lifestyles. Adults enjoy the relaxation and peacefulness afforded by watching birds – nature serves to relieve the stress and can get one’s day going on a tranquil note.

 

Young children are naturally drawn to the activities involved in feeding wild birds, which can serve as excellent educational tools. Children can identify different species of birds with a field guide and can learn about the birds’ feeding and living habits. These observations can then provide excellent research opportunities for school projects and reports.

 

Feeding wild birds in the backyard is an easy hobby to start and need not overtax the family budget. It can be as simple as mounting a single feeder outside a window and filling it with bird seed mix. For many people, the hobby progresses from there. They discover the relationship between the type and location of feeders, and the seeds offered in them, and the number and varieties of birds attracted. Parents can challenge an inquisitive child’s mind as they explore together these factors in trying to encourage visits by their favorite birds.”

John Porter (R-IL) proclamation before Congress on February 23, 1994