According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, over 56 million Americans fed wild birds around their homes in 2016. Over 86 Million people count themselves as wildlife watching participants. Approximately 30 million of these outdoor recreations photographed wildlife. And 11 million people maintained plantings or natural areas to benefit wildlife in 2016. Clearly, people love to watch and care for wild birds and wildlife.
Suet Attracts
  • Woodpeckers
  • Cardinals
  • Blue Jays
  • Warblers
  • Chickadees
  • Wrens
  • Nuthatches
  • Juncos
  • Creepers
  • Titmice
  • Bluebirds
  • Finches
  • Grosbeaks
  • Tanagers
  • Flickers
Top Ten Bird Foods
  1. Black Oil Sunflowers: High Energy; usable by large and small birds; best of the best; should comprise 75 - 80% of all seeds used.
  2. Suet/Suet Cakes.
  3. Peanuts/ Nuts/ Peanut Butter.
  4. Safflower.
  5. Shelled Corn.
  6. Finch Mix/ Nyjer Thistle.
  7. White Proso Millet/ Cracked Corn. Increase use in spring and fall; decrease in other seasons.
  8. Apples, Oranges and Grape Jelly in spring and summer.
  9. Mealworms in spring, summer and fall.
  10. Sugar Water (four parts water to one part sugar) in spring, summer and fall.
5 Steps to Double the Number of Birds at Your Feeders
  1. Feed birds in all 4 seasons.
  2. Provide water in all 4 seasons (if possible, dripping, splashing or misting; heated in winter.
  3. Use at least 8 to 12 feeders, in clusters of 3 to 4 feeders per cluster.
  4. Provide protection from predators (place feeders in the open, 10 foot radius; or encircled by rabbit fencing; brush pile nearby during spring and fall migrations).
  5. Clean feeders and ground areas regularly.

* Source: Nongame Wildlife Program, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Suet Background
Suet is the hard fat from a beef carcass. It is a favorite among tree clinging and insect eating birds any time of the year as well as those that consume a more mixed diet particularly while raising their young. Suet corresponds generally to insects in a bird's diet and is consumed by over 80 species.