The Birds of Nashville: Winter Edition

When we think of birds and winter, we usually think of them flying south.  Lucky thing Nashville is in the south!

If you love birds, there are ways of attracting them to your yard even in the winter! It’s true that most birds in Tennessee fly south for the winter; but there are many birds that stay right here in the heart of Tennessee to beat the winter blues!

Some of the most common birds found in Tennessee during the winter:

American Goldfinch

American Robin

Blue Jay

Carolina Chickadee

Carolina Wren

Dark-eyed Junco

Downy Woodpecker

Eastern Bluebird

Eastern Towhee

House Finch

House Sparrow

Mourning Dove

Northern Cardinal

Northern Mockingbird

Purple Finch

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Song Sparrow

Tufted Titmouse

White-breasted Nuthatches

White-throated Sparrow

Do you want birds to hang around your home during the winter? You really only need three things to make your house a winter wonderland for these stellar sky dwellers!

Shelter

Evergreen trees and shrubs are a good start. They provide warm roosting areas and a convenient escape from possible predators (and we don’t mean hockey players!). Consider using leaf mulch to attract ground feeding birds. Leaf mulch makes a place to forage for earthworms and pill bugs. Which leads us to the next requirement.

Food

Part of enticing these flyers is making sure they have plenty to eat. Figure out which birds are likely to reside in your neighborhood. By doing so, you will know which type of feed and feeder you will need. Before you buy anything, try asking your neighbors what kinds they might have used previously.

Water

Water is usually hard to come by in the wintertime. A clean source near food and shelter is probably the biggest draw for winter birds!

Shallow, hard plastic bird baths are the best choice. They are generally easy to keep clean and many come with a built-in heater. These should be placed up on a pole or pedestal to protect bathers from predator attacks.

If your area is home to bird predators, such as coyotes, foxes, bobcats, feral cats, raccoons and possums, contact Ace Wildlife Control at 615-921-1479. Together you can come up with a plan to exclude these critters without running off the birds you want to see!