How to feed birds in wet weather

Wet weather shouldn't stop you offering all kinds of feed to wild birds in your yard, though it does help to at least keep it dry as possible.

How to feed birds in wet weather relies on the confines of a bird feeder, with smaller bird feeders hung under a hanging squirrel baffle for shelter. If not, group bird feeders under an actual umbrella fixed to a pole. Restock wet bird feed daily while avoiding the need to throw feed on ground, unless in shelter.

If you don't use bird feeders to feed birds in your yard, simply throw bird seeds or other food on the ground, in which case must be under a sheltered spot.

Shelter can be the overhang of a roof with a dry patch below it, a structure in the yard or indeed any cover below trees or in hedges.

Not all birds feed on the ground, which is why bird feeders must be used. To store bird feed in feeders will keep the food dry at all times, or at least in feeders that are well sealed.

Bird feeders can indeed get wet with priority focused on keeping bird food dry to be sure it lasts longer.

Simple squirrel baffle can offer some protection from the elements, as its designed to hang above any feeders, with rain kept well off as it hangs below it in the center.

Its worth mentioning how you feed birds in the snow will use many of these methods, as these ideas are quite effective ways for keeping snow and rain off.

If you fail to keep bird feeders dry as possible, then risk is the food can still get damp, as it has a way of filtering into feeder - or entering via port wells or opening where birds feed through.

Continue to feed birds in a feeder or use natural shelter in the yard, but it can't hurt to replace bird food daily in long spells of wet weather.

Use Squirrel Baffle to keep off rain

For the sake of wild birds health, it would be safer to feed them all kinds of bird food within the confines of a hanging bird feeder.

Hanging style only to allow rainfall to drip or drain away without issues, while providing you the chance to utilize what is a squirrel baffle.

Don't worry, while its used to deter squirrels descending on a bird feeder from above, in this case we are going to change its use, by using the baffle as a useful shelter.

Squirrel baffles that hang are completely sealed from wet weather penetrating this wide, clear plastic shield. Its therefore going to protect any bird feeder that happens to be dangling below it.

Squirrel baffles hang where the bird feeder was initially going to go; only the baffle hangs first, then the bird feeder hangs on a hoop mounted to the underside of the baffle. It will be dead center so this will keep it all nicely balanced.

Its possible to use any type of bird feeder that is designed to hang, thus a smaller, short bird feeder is going to be less exposed to the weather than a large bird feeder, potentially exposed on the sides.

Consider what bird feeder you will be using, only then you can invest in a wider baffle.

Group feed under umbrella

I absolutely love this idea, as it involves a simple but fun umbrella if you want to be mounted on the pole of a bird feeding station.

What you will do is use the umbrella handle to tie with a rope or wire to secure the handle on the length of the pole. What you'd end up with is a bird feeding station pole with an umbrella appearing to be a hat on top.

To feed birds in wet weather in several bird feeders, this would be the way to go as an umbrella can be quite wide, thus the feeder, and therefore the bird food will remain dry in all kinds of bad weather.

Make use of the bird feeding station brackets higher up the pole, as any bird feeder sitting too low down will be exposed to wet weather.

Birds of any kind can continue to feed off bird feeders this way, yet it can make it more difficult for nuisance birds to perch.

What can go wrong is strong wind will upturn the umbrella as it does for people, so do remain cautious with this approach.

Restock wet feed daily

To feed wild birds in wet weather really doesn't need your intervention at all as it happens, as wild bird food can get wet.

Why that is, because its up to you to replenish bird feed once or twice a week in colder months, while this increases to two or three times a week in summer. Bird food only has a few days on it once unsealed, before bacteria begins to germinate.

With that in mind wild bird food such as bird seeds can get wet in bird feeders as you will hopefully be replacing in several times a week to maintain freshness.

I will say restock any type of bird feed daily if bird food is on the ground or exposed to the elements. Whereas a bird feeder can extend bird feed expiry date for a few more days.

To allow bird food to remain wet in the open, it will soften rapidly and therefore begin to show signs of rot - with bacteria present but not visible to the naked eye.

Do replenish bird feed in wet weather as often as you can, as there's no harm in being extra cautious to prioritize backyard birds well being.

No bird food on ground

With the exception of feeding ground eating birds on an above ground bird feeder, you should no longer be feeding birds directly on the ground.

Bird food quickly rots on the ground, even in ideal conditions. On a wet ground bird food is guarantee to rot with conditions so low to the floor, causing the germination process to swiftly see bird food go past its best.

I will then ask you to avoid feeding wild birds on the ground in your yard, with a few exceptions that is.

To throw bird seeds on the ground, the lawn is a better spot in wet weather than a place on a concrete pavement, or indeed on the deck.

Where you throw bird food on the ground matters too, with any cover from trees, hedges or structures being the prime target to aim for.

Never use peanuts or suet as these can germinate quicker than anything else. I would therefore only feed birds on the ground in a long spell of wet weather a handful of seeds or dried mealworms.

Continue to feed ground feeding birds this way by using less feed at a time to avoid waste.

Summary

As it happens this isn't really an issue you should be trying so hard to achieve, as bird feed is designed to get wet, and therefore be overly exposed to bad weather.

It can help to keep bird feed dry at all times as the food retains its freshness for longer.

What you will need then is to hang your wild bird food in bird feeders. Feeders are guaranteed to keep most of the rain off the food, thus is sure to keep the bird feed in prime condition, for longer.

Hang these same bird feeders off their usual spot, while utilizing a squirrel baffle to hang above it to keep rain or snow off the feeders all together.

If you own a bird feeding station pole, then great, that is what you really need for this next method of mind, though its not my idea.

Simply fix an actual umbrella to the pole to allow the wide umbrella to cover over as many bird feeders as you need - as they remain dry when hanging off the higher up brackets on the pole.

Birds can still continue to use these bird feeders under an umbrella, with the bonus of keeping off too big birds in the yard.

Restock bird food daily in long spells of wet weather, as damp can make the bird food soft and rancid in a matter of days - or sooner if its in summer or in a humid climate.

In times of wet weather, avoid throwing bird feed on the ground, as the conditions can speed up the germination process. Stick to using seeds or dried mealworms on the lawn in the rain, while avoiding suet or peanuts.

Share this article: