Simple Ways To Attract Nuthatch Birds To Your Yard

Both avid bird watchers and novice avian fans can agree that attracting certain species to your yard can bring excitement and entertainment throughout the year. If you've wanted to entice nuthatches to visit your feeders but haven't been able to do so, it might just be a matter of adjusting what you're offering to ensure they have reason to come by. Nuthatches are known to be feeder birds (a species that enjoys partaking in the offerings left by humans via bird feeders). 

These little feathered friends get their names because of their affinity for stashing seeds and nuts in tree bark, which they then use to hold their food as they "hatch" or hack at the shells with their beaks. Because they enjoy seeds and other foods that can be kept in feeders, this is one simple way to attract more of this species to your yard. Another is to make a suet for them to snack on. Nuthatches prefer peanuts and sunflower seeds when it comes to dry edibles, so load up your table, platform, or wherever you keep bird food with these to lure nuthatches to your garden.

If the seeds and nuts alone aren't proving as enticing as you'd hoped, making your own suet will keep birds at your feeder longer. This year-round delectable is an amalgamation of beef fat which is safe for birds to munch on. You might be shocked to learn they can quickly and efficiently metabolize this, making it a great source of energy for nuthatches who enjoy suet. To really upgrade your feeder, mix in peanut butter with the fat to create a snack that nuthatches can't resist. To make it, you will need to purchase lard and combine this with natural peanut butter, which is healthier for birds. Melt a cup of each in a pan or pot on a lower heat, then transfer the liquid to a bowl. From here, you can add your own combination of oats, nuts, cornmeal, and/or seeds.

When it comes to suet, make sure you're changing it out often or the lard will go rancid, attracting bugs and unwanted pests. You can even DIY a suet bird feeder to properly accommodate the mixture. If you prefer to avoid using lard, you can always fill your feeder with mealworms (alive), which is a huge draw for nuthatches since they love to eat insects. Just make sure to avoid common mistakes with your feeder like positioning, and keep in mind nuthatches prefer to eat near trees where they also forage.