Black-oil in a tube
Aspects Quick-Clean Seed Tube, Medium #424
Four ports and 1.25 qt of seed; the base comes off to wash it.
Sunflower seeds for birds
Black-oil sunflower feeds the widest range of seed-eating birds: its thin shell is easy to crack and the kernel is rich in fat. Switch to striped sunflower if house sparrows and blackbirds crowd in, and put out hearts only in amounts the birds finish in a day or two.
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Hearts under a roof
Duncraft Cardinal Bird Feeder
A clear bowl under a 16 in weather guard keeps sunflower hearts drier than a tube would.
Squirrels want it too
Brome Squirrel Buster Standard
A squirrel’s weight closes the shroud; 1.3 lb, four ports, and it comes apart by hand.
A commission never decides the picks. How we choose.
Who eats it
23 of the 27 common feeder birds on our seed chart take it, according to Project FeederWatch. Birds in your area vary by region and season.
- American Goldfinch
- House Finch
- Black-capped Chickadee
- White-breasted Nuthatch
- Downy Woodpecker
- Red-bellied Woodpecker
- Song Sparrow
- Dark-eyed Junco
- Mourning Dove
- Blue Jay
- Northern Cardinal
- Tufted Titmouse
- Carolina Chickadee
- Carolina Wren
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Northern Flicker
- Red-breasted Nuthatch
- White-throated Sparrow
- Eastern Towhee
- Pine Siskin
- Purple Finch
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Common Grackle
12 more feeders
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Aspects · Window feeder
The Window Café #155
- Holds 0.75 qt
- Suction cups, no drilling
Seed at the window under a clear roof; the reservoir slides out to fill and wash.
Keep in mind: Treat the glass around it with markers no more than 2 inches apart; a close feeder does not make the window safe on its own.
Aspects · Seed feeder
Big Tube Seed Feeder #421
- Holds 3.5 qt
- Comes apart to clean
A big 3.5 qt tube: the base comes off without tools, even with a seed tray attached.
Keep in mind: It has no squirrel guard; use a baffle and keep it away from jump-off points.
Brome · Seed feeder
Squirrel Buster Classic
- Holds 2.4 lb
- Squirrel-resistant
- Comes apart to clean
A tall 2.4 lb squirrel-resistant tube, at a lower price than the Plus, if you do not need to adjust the spring.
Keep in mind: The spring is not adjustable, so you cannot tune it for heavier birds.
Brome · Seed feeder
Squirrel Buster Legacy
- Holds 2.6 lb
- Squirrel-resistant
- Comes apart to clean
Holds 2.6 lb behind a squirrel-closing shroud, with a spring you can set for heavier birds.
Keep in mind: It needs 18 inches of clear space all round so a squirrel has to climb on to reach it.
Brome · Seed feeder
Squirrel Buster Evolution
- Holds 1.9 lb
- Squirrel-resistant
- Comes apart to clean
A squirrel-resistant feeder with a ring perch big enough for cardinals and drip edges that keep rain off the seed.
Keep in mind: The spring is not adjustable.
Birds Choice · Seed feeder
Medium Hopper Bird Feeder
- Holds 3 lb
- Comes apart to clean
A made-in-USA recycled-plastic hopper for cardinals, jays and chickadees, about 3 lb of seed.
Keep in mind: The 1 in pole flange (#1202) or 15 in hanging cable (#C15) is sold separately.
Duncraft · Seed feeder
Vista Squirrel-Resistant Feeder
- Holds 4.5 lb
- Squirrel-resistant
Holds 4.5 lb, and its adjustable perches shut the seed trays under a squirrel’s weight.
Keep in mind: Set the perch weight with care: too light and it shuts out cardinals too.
Duncraft · Window feeder
Clearly Classic Window Hopper Bird Feeder
- Holds 2.75 lb
- Suction cups, no drilling
A seed hopper on the glass that holds 2¾ lb, with a lift-off roof to refill.
Keep in mind: Treat the glass around it so birds see the window.
Show 4 more
Birds Choice · Seed feeder
Small Hopper Bird Feeder
- Holds 1.5 lb
A small hopper for a few days of sunflower, with a mesh floor that keeps seed dry.
Keep in mind: About 1.5 lb: refill every few days when it is busy.
Birds Choice · Suet feeder
Tall Hopper Bird Feeder with Suet Cages
- Holds 4.5 lb
Seed and two suet cakes in one hanging feeder.
Keep in mind: Heavy when full (4.5 lb empty): hang it from a strong hook or branch.
Birds Choice · Seed feeder
Copper Mesh Hanging Bird Feeder for Black Oil Sunflower and Shelled Peanuts
- Holds 1 lb
Shelled peanuts or sunflower for clinging birds, in a feeder whose top slides up the cable to fill and clean.
Keep in mind: It has no perches: birds cling to the mesh, which suits chickadees, nuthatches and woodpeckers better than cardinals.
Nature's Way · Seed feeder
Squirrel Shield Advantage Cage Feeder
- Holds 3.2 qt
- Squirrel-resistant
- Comes apart to clean
Two defenses in one feeder where squirrels raid: a cage, and a shield that drops over the ports under a squirrel’s weight.
Keep in mind: Nature’s Way does not give the size of the cage openings, so check that the birds you want can get in.
Black-oil, striped or hearts
Black-oil sunflower, the “oilers”, has a shell thin enough for almost every seed-eating bird to crack and a kernel high in fat, which matters most in winter. Striped sunflower has a thicker shell that house sparrows and blackbirds find hard to open, so Cornell suggests trying it first if those birds crowd your feeder.
Sunflower hearts and chips have no shell, so there is nothing to rake up under the feeder, which suits a balcony. They cost more, squirrels love them, and without the shell they spoil quickly and can carry harmful bacteria: put out no more than the birds eat in a day or two.
Which feeder
Sunflower in the shell works in almost any seed feeder: trays, tubes, hoppers and window feeders. Hearts and chips are better on a tray or under a roof than in a tube, where moisture can collect around them.
Squirrels
Sunflower draws squirrels as much as birds. Some baffles and some feeders are fairly good at keeping them off, Cornell notes: a weight-closing feeder such as a Squirrel Buster, or a baffle on the pole with the feeder out of jumping range.
References
| Source |
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| Feeding Birds: a Quick Guide to Seed Types ↗ |
| Common Feeder Birds ↗ |