Although the food we provide in feeders to backyard birds is much appreciated by our feathered visitors, it is only a fraction of the food consumed in wild birds’ diets. Wild birds feast on natural sources of seeds and nectar and dine on all manner of insects. The latter are especially preferred by nesting birds because they provide protein-dense…
Many varieties of trees and shrubs depend on pollinators to reproduce, such as apple, pear, plum and cherry trees. Insect pollinators include bees, butterflies, beetles, moths, flies and wasps. According to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources we have about 400 native wild bee species. Some examples of trees that are pollinated by insects include: Eastern Redbuds, Nannyberry and Gray…