Seeds are a great way to get birds into your yard—but they’re not the only food group out there. Birds have varied diets and some of the following foods will help you attract an even greater selection of birds.
Suet is technically defined as the hard fat around the kidneys and loins in beef and mutton, but in common usage, most kinds of beef fat are also called suet and can safely be fed to birds. Suet is particularly attractive to woodpeckers, nuthatches, chickadees, jays, and starlings. Wrens, creepers, kinglets, and even cardinals and some warblers occasionally visit suet feeders. Animal fat is easily digested and metabolized by many birds; it’s a high-energy food, especially valuable in cold weather.
Raw suet grows rancid quickly when temperatures are above freezing; don’t offer that except in winter. When suet is melted and the impurities removed (“rendering”), it keeps much better, but can still get soft during warm weather. When suet gets soft, it can coat belly feathers, a dangerous situation especially in spring and summer when birds are incubating—tiny pores on the birds’ eggs may get clogged, preventing the developing embryo from getting enough oxygen.
Suet cakes are blocks made from suet or a thick substitute mixed with other ingredients, such as corn meal, peanuts, fruits, or even dried insects. Because corn and peanuts can provide a growth medium for dangerous bacteria, it’s important for you to make your own suet cakes or to buy them from reputable dealers. It may be prudent to keep suet cakes made with corn, cornmeal, or peanuts refrigerated until using.
Starlings are very fond of suet. To dissuade them, offer suet in a feeder that requires birds to feed hanging upside down. Woodpeckers, chickadees, and nuthatches will access it easily, but starlings cannot.
In winter, especially in cold climates, peanut butter is a nutritious food to offer birds. Peanut butter sold in grocery stores is certified safe for human consumption, and is safe to offer birds when cold or cool temperatures keep it fairly hard. In warmer weather it must not be kept outside long enough to become rancid or soft.
There is some concern that soft peanut butter can stick to birds’ mouths. To make it grittier, cornmeal can be added, but because both corn and peanuts provide excellent media for bacterial and fungal growth, make sure peanut butter feeders are cleaned out frequently. Peanut oils can separate in both pure peanut butter and in mixtures. If these oils adhere to a nesting bird’s feathers, they can be transferred to eggs, plugging the pores, so never provide peanut butter mixtures that become soft or oily.
Mealworms are larvae of a flightless insect called the darkling beetle. They’re a serious pest in granaries, but are safe and easy to maintain in our houses, confined in buckets or plastic bins.
Mealworms can be an excellent source of protein, calcium, and vitamins for a great many birds, including some that normally don’t visit feeders, but mealworms are only as healthful as the diet they are fed. If you order them in bulk, they usually come packaged in wads of newspaper, and will eat the paper, ink and all. So make sure to remove them from the paper as quickly as possible when they arrive. It can be tricky to remove them from their packaging—it’s easiest to avoid setting them free in your house if you transfer them from the packaging to your buckets outdoors, or over a very large piece of white paper so you can spot any runaway mealworms before they get far. They don’t live long away from an easy supply of food, but few people relish the thought of them, dead or alive, in crevices in their homes.
To maintain a large number of mealworms, fill the bottom of an ice cream bucket, dishpan, or similar bin with an inch or two of dry oatmeal or wheat bran. Add chunks of raw potato or apple for moisture, and then put the mealworms in. To improve the levels of many nutrients, especially during the nesting season, you can add powdered hand-feeding bird food (the kind marketed as a complete diet for hand-reared baby parrots).
Mealworms can’t escape a plastic enclosure such as a bucket as long as there are at least two or three inches of vertical wall between the surface of the medium and the lip. Keep them in the coolest place in your house—usually a basement is a great choice—on a surface where the bucket won’t easily get knocked over.
There’s a lot of excellent information about mealworms on the North American Bluebird Society website and about how to raise them on the Sialis website.
So very many birds will voraciously gobble up mealworms at feeders that offering them is only affordable if you set out a few at a time, at feeders inaccessible to birds you don’t want to subsidize. Small acrylic window feeders work well; if yours has drainage holes, make sure to plug them because mealworms can squeeze through surprisingly tiny spaces. Special bluebird feeders that exclude most other birds are available commercially, or plans are available here.
Hey there bird lovers! If you’re like me you’ve probably stared at that jar of leftover bacon grease on your counter and wondered, “Can I toss this to my feathered pals outside?” I mean, it’s fat, right? And birds need fat, especially when it’s freezing out. But hold up—before you start mixin’ bacon drippings into your bird suet, let’s get real about whether this stuff is actually good for our winged buddies. Spoiler alert it ain’t as simple as it seems, and I’m gonna break it all down for ya with the straight-up truth.
Right off the bat, I’ll tell ya the answer: No, bacon grease ain’t good for birds. It might seem like a quick, easy way to give ‘em a fatty snack, but there’s some nasty stuff in there that can do more harm than good. Stick with me, though, ‘cause I’m diving deep into why this is a bad idea, what birds really need, and some killer alternatives that’ll keep your backyard flock happy and healthy. Let’s get into it!
What Even Is Bacon Grease, Anyway?
Alright, let’s start with the basics. Bacon grease is just the fat that drips off when you’re fryin’ up those delicious strips of bacon for breakfast. It’s that golden, greasy goodness you might save in a jar for cooking up potatoes or flavorin’ beans. It’s mostly pure fat, with a bit of salt and whatever else was in the bacon itself. Sounds harmless, right? I used to think so too, ‘til I started diggin’ into what’s really in there.
See, most bacon we buy at the store ain’t just pork belly and salt. It’s loaded with preservatives—stuff like nitrates or nitrites—to keep it from goin’ bad and to give it that nice pink color. Plus, there’s a ton of sodium, ‘cause bacon is cured with salt to begin with. When you cook it, those chemicals and salt get even more concentrated in the grease. For us humans, a little bit don’t hurt too much (though we shouldn’t overdo it neither), but for birds? That’s a whole different story.
Why Do Birds Need Fat in Their Diet?
Before we get to why bacon grease is a no-go, let’s chat about why birds need fat in the first place. If you’ve ever watched a tiny chickadee or a nuthatch flittin’ around in the winter, you know they’re burnin’ energy like crazy just to stay warm and keep movin’ Fat is like their super fuel—it’s packed with calories, way more than seeds or bugs, so it helps ‘em survive those brutal cold days
That’s why folks like us put out suet feeders in the backyard. Suet is usually made from beef fat or lard mixed with seeds or nuts, and it’s a lifesaver for birds when food is scarce. I’ve seen woodpeckers and flickers go nuts over a good suet cake and it makes me feel all warm inside knowin’ I’m helpin’ ‘em out. So naturally, you might think bacon grease could do the same trick. I mean, it’s fat, right? But here’s where it gets dang risky.
The Big Problem with Bacon Grease for Birds
Now, let’s get to the meat of the issue—why bacon grease ain’t a safe bet for your bird friends. I ain’t no scientist, but I’ve looked into this ‘cause I care about the little critters in my yard. Here’s the deal, broken down into some clear reasons:
- Preservatives Are Poisonous to Birds: Them chemicals in commercial bacon—like nitrates and stuff—get super strong when the bacon cooks down into grease. What’s fine for us can be straight-up toxic for birds. These compounds can mess with their tiny bodies in ways we don’t even fully get, and some folks say they might even cause cancer-like issues in birds over time. Yikes!
- Too Much Salt Spells Trouble: Bacon grease is salty as heck ‘cause of how bacon is made. Birds can’t handle that much sodium—it messes with their insides, kinda like how too much salt makes us feel bloated or worse. Their little systems just ain’t built for it, and it can lead to serious health probs.
- Not a Natural Food for ‘Em: Birds in the wild eat stuff like insects, seeds, and natural fats from plants or animals. Bacon grease? That’s a human kitchen leftover, full of processed junk. Feedin’ it to ‘em is like givin’ a kid soda instead of water—it might not kill ‘em right away, but it sure ain’t helpin’ long-term.
- Risk of Rancidity: If you leave bacon grease out in a feeder, it can go bad quick, especially in warmer weather. Rancid fat grows mold and bacteria, which is a whole other kinda danger for birds. I’ve seen moldy feeders before, and trust me, you don’t wanna be the one causin’ that.
I remember one winter, I was tempted to mix some old bacon drippings with birdseed ‘cause I ran outta suet. I thought, “Hey, it’s just fat, what’s the harm?” But somethin’ told me to double-check, and I’m glad I did. Imaginin’ those sweet little birds gettin’ sick from my mistake—man, that woulda broke my heart.
What Do Experts Say About This?
Now, I ain’t gonna pretend I’m the only one who’s thought about this. Plenty of bird lovers and wildlife folks have weighed in, and the word on the street is pretty clear: steer clear of bacon grease for bird suet. The reasoning is solid—those preservatives and high salt levels are just too much for birds to handle. Instead, the advice is always to stick with pure, unprocessed fats that mimic what birds might find in nature. I’m with ‘em on this one, ‘cause I’d rather be safe than sorry when it comes to my feathered visitors.
Safer Alternatives to Bacon Grease for Bird Suet
Alright, so bacon grease is off the table (pun intended!), but don’t worry—we got plenty of awesome options to keep your birds fed and happy. Here’s some alternatives I swear by, and I’ve seen ‘em work wonders in my own backyard:
- Pure Lard: This is just plain pig fat, no salt or weird stuff added. It’s super close to natural suet and birds love it. You can buy it cheap at most grocery stores. I usually melt it down a bit and mix in some birdseed for extra oomph.
- Peanut Butter: Yup, good ol’ PB! It’s high in fat and protein, and birds go bonkers for it. Just make sure it’s the unsalted kind—no added sugar or salt, please. I’ve smeared it on pinecones and hung ‘em up—total hit with the chickadees!
- Beef Suet: This is the classic choice for bird feeders. You can get it from a butcher or buy pre-made suet cakes. It’s pure fat from cows, and it’s exactly what birds need in winter. I keep a couple cakes ready to go when the snow hits.
- Rolled Oats or Cornmeal: Mix these with lard or peanut butter for a hearty bird snack. They add bulk and nutrients without any risky junk. I’ve tossed some oats into my homemade suet mix, and the birds don’t seem to mind one bit.
- Dried Fruit: Bits of raisins or cranberries can be a sweet treat for birds, especially when mixed with fat. Just chop ‘em small so little beaks can handle ‘em. I’ve noticed robins peckin’ at fruit bits when I add ‘em to my feeders.
Here’s a quick lil’ table to compare these options at a glance:
| Alternative | Why It’s Good | How to Use It | Birds That Love It |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pure Lard | High fat, no preservatives | Melt and mix with seeds or nuts | Woodpeckers, Nuthatches |
| Peanut Butter | High fat and protein, tasty | Smear on bark or mix into suet | Chickadees, Titmice |
| Beef Suet | Natural fat source for winter | Hang in suet cages or feeders | Flickers, Downy Woodpeckers |
| Rolled Oats/Cornmeal | Adds bulk and energy | Blend with fat for homemade suet | Sparrows, Finches |
| Dried Fruit | Natural sugars and nutrients | Chop and mix into suet or scatter | Robins, Bluebirds |
I’ve tried most of these myself, and let me tell ya, makin’ your own suet is kinda fun. Just grab equal parts lard and peanut butter, melt ‘em together, toss in some birdseed or oats, and let it cool in a mold. Pop it in a feeder, and boom—you’re the neighborhood bird hero!
How to Make Homemade Bird Suet the Right Way
Since we’re tossin’ out the idea of bacon grease, let’s talk about whippin’ up some safe, bird-friendly suet at home. It’s easier than you think, and I’ve got a simple recipe that’s worked for me every time. Here’s the step-by-step:
- Gather Your Stuff: You’ll need 1 cup of pure lard (no salt!), 1 cup of unsalted peanut butter, and about 2 cups of birdseed or rolled oats. Grab a saucepan and some old containers for molds—think empty yogurt cups or muffin tins.
- Melt the Fats: On low heat, melt the lard and peanut butter together in the saucepan. Stir it up ‘til it’s smooth. Don’t let it boil or nothin’, just get it nice and liquidy.
- Mix in the Goodies: Take it off the heat and dump in the birdseed or oats. Stir like crazy so everything’s coated. You can add a handful of chopped dried fruit if you’re feelin’ fancy.
- Cool It Down: Pour the mix into your molds. Stick ‘em in the fridge or freezer to harden up. Takes a couple hours, so be patient.
- Set It Out: Pop the suet cakes outta the molds and put ‘em in a suet feeder or just tie ‘em with string to a tree branch. Watch the birds flock in!
I’ve made batches of this stuff durin’ the holidays as kinda a gift to nature, ya know? Last winter, I hung a couple near my window, and I swear a pair of woodpeckers showed up every mornin’ like clockwork. Felt like I had my own lil’ birdie fan club!
A Personal Story: Learnin’ the Hard Way
I gotta share a quick story ‘bout why I’m so passionate about gettin’ this right. A few years back, before I knew better, I did toss some kitchen scraps— includin’ some greasy bacon bits—out for the birds. I thought I was bein’ helpful, ya know, recyclin’ and all. But then I noticed fewer birds comin’ around, and one day I found a lil’ sparrow lookin’ real rough near the feeder. I ain’t sayin’ it was definitely the grease, but it got me thinkin’—what if I’m hurtin’ ‘em instead of helpin’? That’s when I started readin’ up and switched to proper suet. Haven’t looked back since, and my yard’s busier than ever with happy chirpers.
Other Kitchen Scraps to Avoid
While we’re on the topic, bacon grease ain’t the only no-no from your kitchen. There’s a buncha stuff we might think is okay for birds, but it just ain’t. Here’s a short list of things to keep outta your feeders:
- Bread: It’s like junk food for birds—fills ‘em up but don’t got no real nutrition. Too much can mess with their health big time.
- Salted Nuts or Snacks: Again, salt is a killer for birds. Even a few salty peanuts can be too much.
- Leftovers with Seasonings: Anything with spices, garlic, or onion is bad news. Birds don’t need our fancy flavors, and that stuff can be toxic.
- Sugary Stuff: No candy, no sugary cereals. Their bodies can’t process it, and it messes with their energy levels.
Stick to natural, plain foods if you’re sharin’ from the kitchen. A handful of plain, unsalted seeds or nuts is way better than any processed junk.
Why We Gotta Be Careful Feedin’ Birds
Feedin’ birds ain’t just about tossin’ out some food and callin’ it a day. We’re kinda takin’ responsibility for their well-being, ya know? Birds rely on what we provide, especially in tough seasons like winter when their usual grub is scarce. If we give ‘em somethin’ harmful, we could be doin’ real damage—not just to one bird, but to a whole flock if they keep comin’ back for the bad stuff. I think of it like feedin’ a pet—you wouldn’t give your dog chocolate, right? Same deal here. We gotta choose wisely.
Plus, there’s the whole ecosystem thing. Healthy birds help with pollination, bug control, and spreadin’ seeds around. If we mess up their diet and they get sick, it ripples out. I ain’t no eco-warrior or nothin’, but I like knowin’ my backyard is part of somethin’ bigger.
Wrappin’ It Up: Keep Your Birds Safe and Happy
So, to circle back to the big question—is bacon grease good for birds? Nah, it ain’t. The preservatives, salt, and processed nature of it make it a risky choice, and there’s just no reason to take that chance when there’s so many better options out there. Pure lard, peanut butter, and beef suet are my go-tos, and they’ve never let me down. Mix in some seeds or fruit, and you’ve got a feast that’ll bring all the birds to the yard—without any of the worry.
If you’re as hooked on helpin’ birds as I am, take a sec to whip up some homemade suet with the safe stuff. Watch ‘em enjoy it, and you’ll feel like a million bucks. Got a favorite bird food recipe or a story ‘bout your backyard buddies? Drop it in the comments—I’d love to hear what’s workin’ for ya. Let’s keep our feathered friends fat and happy the right way!
Fruits and fruit seeds
In the tropics, many people set out fruit for birds, attracting a large number of tanagers and other species that people in North America seldom consider “feeder birds.” But even in the north, robins, thrushes, waxwings, bluebirds, mockingbirds, catbirds, and tanagers can sometimes be attracted to feeders providing fruit. Because few people in the United States or Canada offer fruit at feeders, few individuals of these species have experience eating at feeders, so it can be tricky to entice them to get close enough to figure out the concept. Fresh berries; chunks of fresh apples, melons, or grapes; or frozen berries, are excellent choices. Raisins or currants that have been softened by soaking in water may also be good. Orange halves are particularly attractive during spring migration, especially to orioles.
Providing fruits can cause some serious problems. It spoils quickly, so feeders must be emptied and cleaned very frequently. Offering fruit in a plastic cereal bowl makes this an easier task. Unfortunately, in summer, fruit attracts ants and wasps; fortunately, there’s no compelling reason to feed fruit in summer and fall when so much fresh fruit is available naturally.
Pumpkin seeds and other squash or melon seeds can be extremely attractive for birds. Bake them or spread them out to dry completely, and then run them through a food processor to chop them up, which will make them easier for smaller birds to eat.
Orioles, catbirds, and sometimes Cape May Warblers can be enticed to visit feeders offering jelly. Make sure to only offer very small quantities at once, because jelly gets extremely sticky; small birds can become mired in it. Also, jelly has much higher sugar concentrations than any natural food. It’s probably not unhealthful for adult birds to supplement their diets during severe food shortages associated with unseasonable cold spells in spring, or in small quantities during the rest of the year. Sometimes adult orioles and other birds visit jelly for Pyrrhuloxia a quick snack while searching out insect food for their young in summer; this won’t hurt them.
Eggshells are an excellent source of grit and calcium, but chicken eggs may harbor the salmonella bacteria. Shells from hard-boiled eggs were sterilized in the cooking process, but if you provide eggshells that weren’t cooked, bake them for 20 minutes at 250 degrees Fahrenheit, let them cool, and then crush them into pieces smaller than a dime. Offer eggshells on the ground, in a dish, or on a low platform feeder, separate from your seed feeders.
Not recommended. Putting out leftovers may seem like a way to avoid waste, but it’s not usually a good idea for feeding birds in your backyard. It’s possible for the food to spoil and be unhealthy for songbirds; and it’s quite likely to attract European Starlings, House Sparrows, or even more undesirable species such as rats, mice, and raccoons.
Not recommended. Bacon drippings are animal fat just like suet, and many birds will eat it. But bacon virtually always has detectable amounts of nitrosamines, carcinogenic compounds formed from some of the preservatives used in bacon. In particular, the very high cooking temperatures used to fry bacon are conducive to nitrosamine formation. So despite the fact that birds love it, bacon and bacon fat pose too much of a risk to the long-term health of birds to warrant using it.
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MAKE YOUR OWN BIRD SUET WITH BACON GREASE
FAQ
Can I give birds bacon grease?
Bacon grease is not good for birds just because they like it. Like with humans, bacon grease can lead to obesity and heart problems. It is high in fat, salt, and carcinogens like nitrates. Use sparingly. If you want to be good to the birds, peanut butter and pure lard are healthy substitutes for bacon fat.
Is grease harmful to birds?
Whether it’s vaseline, WD-40, axle grease, vegetable oil, or another greasy or oily products greasing poles can be very harmful to birds and squirrels.
What animals eat bacon grease?
Bluebirds, jays, woodpeckers, and Carolina wrens readily accept this source of fat, whether you offer it straight or use it in bird-treat recipes. Bacon grease also draws crows, starlings, and even ravens.
Can I use bacon fat to make suet?
Is Bacon Fat Safe for Bird Suet? Kenn and Kimberly: Making your own suet can be rewarding, but there are a few important things to know before you begin. While lard is a safe alternative to rendered suet, avoid using bacon drippings. The chemical preservatives in commercial bacon become more concentrated once cooked.Sep 22, 2022