How to Feed Wild Birds Sunflower Seeds
Nearly all backyard birds love to eat sunflower seeds. If you're wondering what to put in your bird feeder, it's a great seed choice to bring more feathered friends around. You can either fill your feeder with all sunflower seeds or choose a blend of sunflower seeds, fruits and grains to appeal to a variety of wild birds.
- Which Wild Birds Eat Sunflower Seeds?
- Types of Sunflower Seeds
- Bird Feeders That Hold Sunflower Seeds
- Attract More Wild Birds with Sunflower Seeds
Most seed-eating wild birds enjoy sunflower seeds.
Which Wild Birds Eat Sunflower Seeds
Adding sunflower seeds to your bird feeding station brings the most variety of hungry feathered friends into view. Expect to see cardinals, chickadees, nuthatches, titmice, goldfinches, woodpeckers, juncos, Pine Siskins and many more species eating sunflower seeds.
Who you won't see at sunflower-seed-filled feeders are birds with strict, insect-only, fruit-only or nectar-only diets that don't care for sunflower seeds. For example, insectivorous birds such as swallows and martins that dine on mosquitoes, flies, wasps, spiders, beetles and other insects aren't usually attracted to sunflower seeds.
Attract many types of birds with sunflower seeds.
Types of Sunflower Seeds
The three types of sunflower seeds wild birds enjoy most include black oil sunflower seeds, hulled sunflower seeds and sunflower seed chips. Each has its own benefits and birds it attracts.
Black Oil Sunflower Seeds
Black oil sunflower seeds are the smallest variety of sunflower seeds sold for wildlife consumption and contain the highest percentage of healthy oil compared to others, making them the most nutrient-dense option for birds visiting your yard. Sunflower seeds offer beneficial protein, unsaturated fatty acids, dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals and so much more.
Fill your bird feeder with one of these options:
- Pennington Select Black Oil Sunflower Seed: High-quality protein and the most popular choice of seed-eating birds. Includes vitamins A and D3, so you can offer your wild birds the ultimate in nutrition.
- Pennington Feeding Frenzy All Birds High Variety Blend: Fuel birds in all seasons with this blend that includes black oil sunflower seeds, peanuts, mealworms and more to bring a wide variety of birds to your yard. Expect to see Carolina Wrens, cardinals, nuthatches, titmice, woodpeckers and more.
- Pennington Ultra Songbird Blend: Attract songbirds to your yard with this mix featuring black oil sunflower seeds, raisins, safflower, millet and more. Appeals to chickadees, goldfinches, Purple Finches, grosbeaks, juncos and others.
Birds find thin, black oil sunflower seed hulls easy to crack open. The outer part of the seed is inedible, so hulls may stack up under your feeder and require regular removal. Hulls can become a bacteria-attracting health hazard to wild birds and stunt the growth of plants beneath them. Regular removal of the hulls will keep your yard looking its best.
Hulled Sunflower Seeds
Avoid the mess of sunflower seed hulls by choosing a "hulled" option. The hard outer shell of the black oil sunflower seed is removed, leaving the softer inner sunflower kernel for wild birds to enjoy.
Hulled seeds are considered a no-mess option and easier for wild birds to eat. Plus, this type of sunflower seed may attract more birds to your feeder because the ready-to-eat food helps them conserve energy. No seed cracking needed! You might spot tired, nesting parents visiting your feeder to stock up on hulled sunflower seeds for an easy meal to feed their babies.
Add Pennington Ultra Waste Free Nuts & Fruit Blend to your feeder to see if your visitors enjoy hulled sunflower seeds. This mix features hulled sunflower seeds as well as other hulled seeds, shelled nuts and fruit pieces to entice finches, grosbeaks, nuthatches, cardinals and more.
Sunflower Seed Chips
For an even easier-to-eat option to offer wild birds, consider sunflower seed chips — small pieces of hulled black oil sunflower seeds. These bite-sized morsels bring in petite wild species, such as finches, chickadees and sparrows. Plus, no hulls, no mess.
Stock up on one of these options:
- Pennington Select Sunflower Chips: Vitamins and nutrients added to these sunflower chips keep your feathered friends healthy year-round.
- Pennington Feeding Frenzy Bits & Chips No Mess Blend: Sunflower chips mixed with peanut bits bring Blue Jays, woodpeckers, Yellow-rumped Warblers and more to your feeder.
- Pennington Ultra Supreme Finch Blend: Contains niger seed and sunflower chips to attract Purple Finches, goldfinches and other small species, including chickadees and titmice.
Fill your bird feeder with hulled or chipped sunflower seeds to attract more birds.
Bird Feeders That Hold Sunflower Seeds
Choose the right bird feeder to make feeding wild birds sunflower seeds simple. Four common ways to offer this food to your feathered friends include hopper feeders, tube feeders, platform feeders and ground feeding.
Hopper Feeders
Hopper feeders, which look like little houses or sheds, are filled from the top roof area, then seeds are pushed down by gravity to the openings at the bottom for wild birds to eat. You can conveniently look through the clear walls of a hopper feeder and know when you need to add more seed.
This popular bird feeder style holds all types of sunflower seeds. Three of our favorite hopper options include the Pennington Cedar Treater Bird Feeder, the Pennington Songbird Lantern Bird Feeder and the Pennington Copper Roof Café.
Tube Feeders
Tube feeders also fill at the top and use gravity to pull the seeds down to the openings for birds to enjoy. The long, slender tube style easily fits into small patio decor or narrow spaces. Peek at the clear cylinder to see when the seed gets low, then top it off. This feeder can hold whole, hulled or chipped sunflower seeds.
If you have problems with squirrels raiding your bird feeder, the Pennington Squirrel Resistant Feeder in Bronze will keep furry critters away so birds can enjoy their sunflower seed meal in relative peace.
Platform Feeders
Platform feeders feature a flat, open area where you pour seeds for birds to enjoy. This tray-style setup requires more frequent filling due to its smaller capacity than other styles of feeders. However, it allows for unobstructed views of the birds that stand on the feeder to eat. Grab your binoculars or camera and enjoy!
Secure the Pennington Cedar Hanging 2 in 1 Bird Bath/Feeder to a pole or hanger, then fill it with any type of sunflower seeds you like to offer. The mesh bottom design drains away moisture from rain or snow, keeping the seed fresh and dry.
Ground Feeding
Sprinkle sunflower seeds on the ground for your wild birds to enjoy. Think about where you'd like to see more activity — in the garden, near the deck, by the front porch — and sprinkle away. Ground feeding may also attract chipmunks and squirrels.
Some sunflower seeds can work their way into the soil and sprout. Simply mow over them or pull them out to avoid unwanted sunflower plants.
Sunflower seeds offer abundant nutrition for wild birds.
Attract More Wild Birds with Sunflower Seeds
Sunflower seeds top the list of delicious, nutritious foods for seed-eating wild birds. Whether you offer black oil sunflower seeds, hulled sunflower seeds or sunflower seed chips, you'll make the wild birds in your yard happy.
Here at Pennington, we love birds as much as we love lawns and gardens. That's really what adoring nature and caring for your home is about. If you have questions about birdwatching, growing plants or creating a beautiful green lawn, we have the answers you need. Reach out. Let us help you nurture your roots and dreams.
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