Cardinals have no problem getting to the seed inside, but many other birds do. This seed is a great option to use if you want to attract cardinals but discriminate against other birds. Unfortunately, almost every other bird species eat sunflowers chips too so cardinals will have more competition at the feeder. Cardinals enjoy safflower and eat it regularly. But an amazing benefit of safflower is that many other birds ignore it, which leaves more food for cardinals! When I want to see as many cardinals as possible at my feeders, then I typically use a mix of black oil sunflower and safflower seed.
A few other foods that attract cardinals to bird feeders are corn and shelled peanuts. There are thousands of different bird feeders that you can choose from, but cardinals will not use many of them, even if they contain their favorite foods. This is because not all bird feeders are designed to meet the specific needs of Northern Cardinals.
Second, they prefer to feed facing forward. The perches on tube feeders also tend to be too small for cardinals. A simple hack to get cardinals to use a tube feeder is to attach a tray at the bottom.
This gives them a place to land and eat from without having to use the feeding ports. In this short video, you can see some of the bird feeders that my cardinals enjoy best! Here is a LIVE view of the ground beneath my bird feeders. To help make cardinals feel comfortable in your backyard and around your feeders, you should make sure there are plenty of places for them to hide and take cover. Cardinals prefer hiding and nesting in dense thickets that include vines, shrubs, or bushes.
My recommendation is to place your bird feeding station near these areas and avoid the middle of your yard. Cardinals will appreciate the privacy and being near escape routes! Those tiny vertical feeders might be hard for Northern Cardinals to latch onto. They much prefer steady, heavy feeders that will hold their weight. Cardinals switch up their nesting spots frequently.
But they very well may abandon the spot a few weeks later when they have another clutch. And so having a variety of thick shrubs and evergreen trees is important to satisfy the nesting needs of cardinals. You could put out the most elaborative and beautiful bird houses and cardinals will always scoff at it and build a nesting spot for themselves.
You can use an empty suet feeder or even place materials on their platform feeders. To attract Cardinals to your birdbaths, you may consider adding drippers to keep the water moving. Keep in mind, whichever method you choose, water should be changed, and vessels should be cleaned frequently to prevent algae and dirt buildup. Cardinals live in the same place all year, even during the winter months.
To ensure that water is available in freezing temperatures, you should frequently refresh still water or add a heated birdbath. With that, your yard is sure to be a hotspot for the Cardinals in your area! As mentioned above, Cardinals enjoy secluded areas surrounded by thick foliage with lots of trees and shrubs. Planting trees and bushes of varying heights will help these songbirds to feel safe and protected.
Make sure to include evergreen trees and other plants that will be able to provide cover during the sparser winter months as well. Unlike many other backyard birds, Cardinals will not use birdhouses or nesting boxes.
In addition to enjoying dense plant life for shelter, they also prefer it for nesting. Grapevines, tall trees, and shrub thickets are ideal options for nest sites. Readily available nesting materials are also essential to encouraging long-term Cardinal nesting.
Make sure that your yard features pine needles, small twigs, grass clippings, and other materials so that Cardinal visitors will build a nest nearby.
There are also a few things you can avoid to make your property safer, ensuring many return visits by your cardinal friends. Reflective surfaces. Cardinals are known to attack their reflections as a territory-protecting measure. You can prevent this by eliminating the reflection of windows or mirrors near nesting and feeding areas. For windows, try using screens or bird netting to deter them.
Planting trees and bushes of varying heights will help these songbirds feel safe and protected. To give your birds as much coverage as possible, be sure to include the six basic layers: large trees, small trees, large shrubs, small shrubs, perennials, and ground cover.
Northern Cardinals rarely use birdhouses but they do use nesting shelves , preferring to nest in dense shrubbery or greens, another great reason to consider planting thick greenery that they can use. A great way to attract nesting birds to your yard is to offer them a variety of nesting materials. You can easily do this by putting yarn, string, or even dog fur in an empty suet cage and hanging it near your feeders.
Any similar lightweight material, like the leftover hair in your brush, will do. Cardinals can have several broods per year but rarely reuse a nest. Offering nesting material is a small touch that can keep Cardinals coming to your yard all year long. During those colder months, heated bird baths are essential for providing winter water.
Still, water should be frequently refreshed to avoid freezing, or a heated bird bath should be used to prevent freezing on even the coldest of days. Heated baths usually come in two styles basin or immersion , and both are useful in providing liquid water for backyard birds 4. Northern Cardinals are territorial birds, and when aggressive hormones are at their peak, these birds can spend many hours defending their territory against unwelcome intruders.
Unfortunately, they will attack their own reflection seen in a window, car mirror, or even a shiny bumper if they feel threatened. While often not fatal, these fights can last hours or days and may case beak damage or unnecessary stress 5. The same methods used to prevent bird-window collisions can work to stop birds from attacking windows 6. Examples include covering car mirrors with something opaque like a plastic bag and use netting or decals on windows. Northern Cardinals are very shy birds and every unexpected movement can scare them away.
Keep outdoor pets away from feeding areas if you can.
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