Prepare for the Season (and a lot of Bird Activity)
Spring is one of the most exciting seasons for bird enthusiasts. As winter gives way to warmer days, birds become more active, showy and vocal. By being seasonally savvy, you can create the perfect environment to help them thrive. With just a few thoughtful choices, your backyard can become an important stopover for migrating flocks and a safe haven for year-round residents.
As spring progresses, many migrant species will arrive, while winter visitors prepare to leave the area. To support both groups, provide foods high in fat and energy, which are essential fuel for long journeys. Suet, high-fat seed blends, and Bark Butter® are excellent options to keep them energized and healthy as they travel.
At the same time, courtship and nesting activities shift into high gear. Soon, young birds will appear at your feeders, eager for a reliable food source. Offering high-protein, calcium-enriched foods helps busy parents and their young. Spring is also the ideal season to enhance your yard by adding new feeders and planting native trees, shrubs and flowers that provide food and shelter for birds.
Visit us soon to learn more about getting your yard ready for spring and the birds that follow.
Birds pictured are representative of the many North American species that migrate. Ask us which birds are migrating in our area.
Plant a Tree, Save the Song Birds
Birds and trees go hand in hand. Trees aren’t just part of the landscape, they’re lifelines for birds. They provide shelter in every season, safe nesting sites in spring and an endless buffet of insects that nourish adults and their hungry offspring. Simply put: more trees = more birds.
Habitat loss is the biggest factor for the decline in bird populations. That's why Wild Birds Unlimited has partnered with the Arbor Day Foundation to restore critical forest habitats across the US and Canada. Together, we’re planting thousands of native trees that will benefit not only today’s birds, but generations to come.
You can be part of the solution right in your own backyard. Planting a single native tree creates food, cover and nesting opportunities for local birds, while also making your environment healthier and more vibrant. Join our mission to #SaveTheSongBirds and help nature thrive, one tree at a time. Learn more at www.wbu.com/plant-trees.
On Sale While Supplies Last! Buy three, get one free (equal or lesser item only)!
Winter is a wonderful time to feed the birds. Not only is a chance to help birds get the necessary fats for surviving longer nights and colder temperatures, but it's also a good time to see a variety of birds visiting you're feeders. Our Winter SuperBlend® is a high-fat seed blend, specifically formulated to provide birds the essential energy and fats needed to survive whatever winter throws at them.
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Prevent Window Strikes and Help Save the Song Birds
Here’s a harsh truth: colliding with windows can be fatal for birds. Even if they manage to fly away, they're not just “stunned,” birds are often seriously injured. Windows reflecting sky or greenery trick birds into thinking there’s a clear flight path, and juvenile birds (who are just figuring things out) are especially at risk.
Preventing window strikes is one way you can help Save the Song Birds. With a few thoughtful adjustments, you can help birds recognize your windows as barriers, not passage ways.
- Feeder Placement: Place bird feeding stations within three feet (1 meter) of the window or beyond ten feet (3 meters). Within three feet, birds ‘fleeing’ the feeder area will not have built up enough speed to injure themselves if they strike the window. Beyond ten feet, birds will have enough time to spot and avoid the window.
- Visual Cues: Apply deterrents to your windows (such as screens or decals) to help birds see the barrier and give them a chance to take action before any harm is done.
- Install a Window Feeder: Use a window feeder to make birds more aware of the glass and so you have a front-row seat to watch your feathered visitors.
Go here to learn more, or stop by the store and we’ll walk you through the best ways to wipe out window strikes.
Go here to purchase window decals online
Wild Birds Unlimited in Winchester is your source for high quality Zeis Optics. With exceptional optical performance, these are perfect for bird watchers and all nature lovers.
Check out our range of optics here
April Nature Happening
- Project FeederWatch ends this month, feederwatch.org
- Spring wildflowers in bloom
- Begin to monitor nest boxes after the middle of the month.
- South winds bring major waves of migrating birds such as thrushes and warblers.
- Osprey, Bald Eagles and hawks return.
- Green Herons arrive.
- Woodcocks continue their "sky dance" courtship flights.
- Hummingbirds arrive. Be sure to have their feeders ready.
- Purple Martins arrive by mid-month.
- Buttercups, Lady's Slipper and Trilliums join the Virginia Bluebells.
- Start looking for Mayapples at the end of the month.
- Lyrids meteor shower, late-April.
- Earth Day, April 22.