In my backyard, I have a hopper feeder filled with a mixture of seed and berries, designed to attract songbirds. I also have thistle feeders for the finches, hummingbird feeders, suet in the cooler months, and a woodpecker block. With such a variety of food, I have been able to attract about seventy different species in the last four years. Of course, the birdseed and food alone don't bring all the birds; I am lucky to live on the edge of a mountain full of natural resources such as insects and berries from native trees. Fresh water is provided in the birdbath, and farther back in the woods from a small fresh water stream.
I started noticing the supply of birdseed was dwindling fast; faster than should be from the amount of birds who came to the feeders. I decided to do some detective work.
The first nibbler I saw was a gray squirrel and later, a red squirrel. The squirrels eat everything. They eat the suet, they love the sunflower seeds, and they try to take the entire woodpecker block back to their nest with them. Because they tend to eat most of what I have available, I usually try to scare them away so the birds can eat.
Another member of the rodent family, a chipmunk, has conveniently made my bird feeding area a highlight of her warren of holes. I have had to shake her out of the feeder when she tried to stick her entire body into one of the holes and became lodged inside. The chipmunk likes the seeds and will pocket them in her cheeks and run into her hole, nipping at the cardinals along the way.
I have never seen a mouse or a rat, although I understand they love birdseed too. The copper mouth snake takes care of them!
This year I had two new visitors: two young foxes. Every morning around seven the two would bound up the hill and delicately nibble on whatever seed the birds left on the ground. They would play with each other while eating and were a joy to watch.
The largest non-bird visitor to the bird feeder has to be the black bear. The one who tends to come up my hill is a large adult male with silver on his rump and muzzle. We think he is an old bear looking for easy-to-get grub. He moves slowly up the hill, with the blue jays screeching at him all the way. When he gets to the pole with the feeders suspended on it, he reaches his two huge paws forward to grasp the pole and pull it to him. Then he lifts the largest feeder up and dumps the entire contents down his throat, much like a kid with a pixie stick. He will drop that feeder when done, and swipe the cage with metal cage with the woodpecker block in it, and rip open the metal like it was paper to get at the honey coated block. Not done yet, he takes the suet with him into the woods. I have lost a pole a year because of that old fellow, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
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