Photo © Grady Allen

IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD

Feeding Winter Birds

You don't have to put away your hummingbird feeder after all.

Should we feed birds all winter? In a nutshell, yes! TPWD ornithologist Cliff Shackelford says Texas’ warm climate means you should maintain a clean seed feeder (and a bird bath) all year long for birds, including hummingbirds. Forget your worries about interfering with their natural practices.

“It’s an old wives’ tale to take down your hummingbird feeder or hummingbirds won’t migrate south,” Shackelford says. “Heck, birds are hardwired to migrate when they’re ready; humans don’t have any control of something as old as bird migration.”