Winter is hard on birds because of cold, wind, long nights and scarce food, as the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Winter Bird Feeding notes put it. Writing in Cornell's Living Bird, Bernd Heinrich explains that birds generally keep a body temperature of about 105°F, and that on a cold night a chickadee may have to shiver all night and burn most of its fat reserves. This page covers the foods that help most in winter, water, cold-weather feeder setup and roost boxes for long nights. For a year-round, species-by-species seed chart, see what to feed backyard birds.
What winter feeding does (and doesn't) do
The Aldo Leopold Foundation describes a Wisconsin study of Black-capped Chickadees over three winters (1982–85), carried out with Margaret Brittingham:
| Finding | Chickadees with a feeder | Without supplemental food |
|---|---|---|
| Birds in the study | 418 banded | 158 |
| Survived October to April | About 69% | About 37% |
| Share of energy from feeders | About 20–25% | — |
Most of the survival difference came during cold snaps below 0°F lasting five days or more; in milder weather survival did not differ. The study found no sign that feeders improved breeding success the next spring, and disease deaths rose at feeders that were easily soiled with droppings or not cleaned regularly. More on the species: Black-capped Chickadee.
Two more points from Cornell: day length, not food, triggers migration, so feeding is unlikely to change when birds migrate. And if you go away, ask a neighbor to refill the feeder or taper off gradually; birds can switch back to natural food.
The top 10 winter foods
Audubon magazine's list, from Bill Thompson III, former editor of Bird Watcher's Digest (first published 2010; Audubon says it is still accurate):
| # | Food | Birds named | Serving notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black-oil sunflower | Nearly every feeder bird | Thin shell, easy to crack |
| 2 | Peanuts | Woodpeckers, jays, nuthatches, chickadees, titmice; also cardinals and finches | Shelled, dry-roasted, unsalted |
| 3 | Suet | — | High-fat; ask a supermarket butcher; a mesh onion bag works as a feeder |
| 4 | Good mixed seed | Depends on the mix | Sunflower, cracked corn, white proso millet; no dyed pet seed, wheat or filler |
| 5 | Nyjer (thistle) | Goldfinches; House, Purple and Cassin's finches; Pine Siskins; redpolls | Thistle tube feeder or sock |
| 6 | Safflower | Many birds | Fits any sunflower feeder; turns soggy on wet ground |
| 7 | Cracked corn | Sparrows, blackbirds, jays, doves, quail (and squirrels) | — |
| 8 | Mealworms | Most feeder birds, not goldfinches | Slippery-sided dish; store in rolled oats |
| 9 | Fruit | Many birds | Grapes, citrus slices, apple, banana; soak chopped raisins |
| 10 | Homemade treats | — | Audubon suggests its Zick Dough suet recipe |
Cornell adds that safflower appeals to cardinals but less to starlings, House Sparrows and squirrels, and that peanut butter mixed with cornmeal or oatmeal reduces any choking concern. Suet types, recipes and temperature limits are on our suet page.
A simple homemade mix
Cornell's notes give one mix: 25 lb black-oil sunflower, 10 lb white proso millet and 10 lb cracked corn. Store seed in tight, waterproof containers, preferably metal to keep rodents out. Mixes padded with filler often go to waste, and uneaten seed can grow mold and bacteria (Cornell), and University of Wisconsin Extension names milo and hulled oats as fillers birds pick through.
Where sources differ: Cornell also says ground-feeding birds often prefer white millet or red milo, while Audubon's list calls only "some red milo" filler. If milo piles up uneaten under your feeder, leave it out.
Leftovers and fruit
Cornell lists dried squash, melon and pumpkin seeds (chopped in a food processor for small birds), and softened raisins or currants, sliced apples, oranges or frozen berries for robins, thrushes, bluebirds, waxwings and mockingbirds. Mold-free stale bread or cake can be offered but may draw starlings, House Sparrows, rats or raccoons.
Water in winter
Unfrozen water is often as scarce as food in winter and can draw birds that don't normally visit feeders, Cornell's notes say. Use a shallow, easy-to-clean bath (an upside-down garbage can lid or a large frying pan works), keep it open with an immersion-style heater, and clean and refill it often.
Photo: Courtney Celley/USFWS, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Heater types, outdoor-cord safety and why antifreeze never goes in a bath are compared in our bird bath guide.
Setting up feeders for cold weather
| Topic | Cornell notes | UW Extension | Audubon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feeder height | — | 5–6 ft off the ground | — |
| Distance from cover | About 10 ft from trees or shrubs, ideally evergreens that block wind | About 10 ft, since cats can hide in cover | — |
| Windows | On the window, its frame, or within 3 ft of glass | Within 3 ft, or more than 30 ft away | — |
| Feeder style | Sturdy, keeps seed dry, easy to clean | Roof or drainage holes; several styles cut competition | — |
| Snow and old seed | — | — | Keep feeders clear of snow; shake to loosen packed seed; empty old remnants |
| Keep it going | — | Keep feeding through winter into early spring | Keep feeders full in harsh weather |
Cornell also suggests a loosely stacked brush pile near feeders as cover for ground birds such as Song Sparrows. Clean feeders about every two weeks, more often with heavy use, and rake up hulls (Cornell); the steps are in how to clean a bird feeder. Why window distance matters: window collisions.
Roost boxes for cold nights
Cavity nesters such as bluebirds, chickadees, titmice, nuthatches and small woodpeckers may roost in boxes in winter, sometimes more than a dozen to a box to save heat (All About Birds). Georgia's Department of Natural Resources adds screech-owls, flickers and Carolina Wrens, says Blue Jays shelter in them in harsh weather, and notes it "isn't unusual" to see a half-dozen or more bluebirds enter one box before sunset. A roost box is built to hold body heat, unlike a nest box.
- Entrance near the bottom: about 2 in wide for most small birds, about 1½ in to keep starlings out, about 3 in for flickers and screech-owls (All About Birds).
- Staggered perches: several small wooden dowels at different heights (All About Birds); Georgia DNR uses ¼-inch dowels, none directly above another.
- Rough inner walls: front and rear roughened, scored or lined with hardware cloth so woodpeckers can cling (All About Birds).
- Hinged top for cleaning, and fewer ventilation holes than a nest box (All About Birds).
- Warm air rises and stays in the box above the low entrance (All About Birds; Georgia DNR).
- Size: Georgia DNR's ideal box for small birds is 10 inches square and 3 feet tall.
- Nest box: the entrance near the top lets rising warm air escape (Georgia DNR).
- Mounting: metal pole or wooden post with a metal baffle below the box, out of prevailing winds, facing south (All About Birds); Georgia DNR says 8–10 ft up, facing south.
Converting a nest box for winter (All About Birds): turn the front panel so the hole is at the bottom, add twigs as perches, and plug some ventilation holes. Nest box sizes by species are in birdhouse dimensions, and whether to leave boxes up over winter is covered in when to clean out birdhouses.
Natural shelter
Audubon's advice for fall yard work: leave the seed heads of coneflowers, black-eyed Susans and native grasses such as bluestems and gramas, leave the leaves, and build a brush pile from fallen branches, which American Tree Sparrows and Black-capped Chickadees can use. Evergreens such as cedars and firs give both food and cover. Plant ideas: native plants for birds.
Winter feeding checklist
- Black-oil sunflower in at least one feeder (Audubon; UW Extension)
- Suet or peanut butter mixed with cornmeal or oatmeal for chickadees, woodpeckers and nuthatches (Cornell)
- No filler-heavy mixes; seed kept in a metal, waterproof container (Cornell)
- Feeders within 3 ft of windows, about 10 ft from cover (Cornell)
- Snow brushed off, packed seed shaken loose, feeders kept full (Audubon)
- Shallow water kept open with a heater; cleaned and refilled often (Cornell)
- Feeders cleaned about every two weeks; hulls raked up (Cornell)
- A roost box up, or a nest box converted, facing south out of the wind (All About Birds)
- Seed heads, leaves and a brush pile left in the yard (Audubon)
- Feeding continued into early spring (UW Extension)
Winter feeders also make good count sites: Project FeederWatch runs all winter, and a steady feeder crowd keeps a Bird-a-Day streak going on cold days.
Sources
- Top 10 Foods for Winter Bird Feeding — Audubon (Alisa Opar, 2010, updated 2026)
- To Help Birds This Winter, Go Easy on Fall Yard Work — Audubon (Andy McGlashen, 2017)
- Winter Bird Feeding (BirdNotes, PDF) — Cornell Lab of Ornithology (2014)
- Attract Birds With Roost Boxes — All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology (updated 2023)
- Will birds use nest boxes to roost in for warmth during the winter? — All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- How Do Birds Survive the Winter? — Bernd Heinrich, Living Bird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology (2018)
- Five Tips for Winter Bird Feeding — University of Wisconsin–Madison Division of Extension, Natural Resources Institute (Jenna Mertz, 2020)
- Out My Backdoor: Warm Havens for Winter Birds — Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division (Terry W. Johnson)
- Is Winter Bird Feeding Good for Birds? — Aldo Leopold Foundation