There are many myths surrounding bird feeding. We've gotten to the bottom of 24 of them!
When birds have chicks, it's important to feed them with mealworms!
Another myth often spread by those of us who sell bird food. In reality, nature is full of natural bird food when birds have chicks—or rather, it should be. Unfortunately, there's a gardening trend towards more sterile gardens, which benefits neither insects nor birds.
Common arguments from us who sell bird food include the claim that it's so hectic for the “birds.” By supplementary feeding the parents, they receive more energy to feed their young. And it's also good to provide protein-rich food—so by all means, feed with expensive live mealworms to make a contribution to the “birds.”
When you read this type of argumentation, it tugs at the heartstrings—you just want to help the poor “birds” that struggle so hard to find insects for their chicks! Buy these products from a kind company offering them to you so you can restore balance in nature........
At some point, we’ve even read that it's so important to feed the “birds” now because insects are drastically decreasing due to all the spraying. An argument that's easy to buy into if you don't think it through. In reality, it's a kind of double irony. For one, it's not the birds having trouble due to fewer insects in the landscape that come to a bird feeding. Also, the bird food the company sold was grown with the help of spraying. It's a bit like if a can recycler came up with the brilliant idea of buying soda themselves with the deposit money to get more cans to recycle…..
If you sell pesticide-treated bird food, it can seem hollow to argue for the importance of feeding birds, especially given the increasing scarcity of wild insects due to all the spraying.
At Slåttergubben, we lift our gaze.
We see the swallows, they either take seeds or mealworms. They depend on a rich supply of flying insects. Unfortunately, swallows, warblers, cuckoos, honey buzzards, and basically all other birds are "forgotten" by those who argue that we must help “the birds” with summer feeding. It is easy to establish relationships with only a few species and forget the others, which is understandable, but nature benefits enormously if we can have a close and understanding relationship with diversity itself. If we dare to let go of control and simply facilitate the ecosystems from the ground up to see what happens. For nobody has a handle on all species. It is manageable to learn all of Sweden's 250 bird species. But we also have about 50,000 insect species! They too are species with the right to live in viable populations.
The willow warbler is rarely seen, yet it is Sweden's most common bird. It is completely dependent on wild insects for its survival year-round. The willow warbler can be found in gardens with high biodiversity, but it is seldom seen, not even at a bird feeder. Photo by Mikael Schulin.
At Janne's (Slåttergubben's) place, kestrels nest. Building and putting up a box is easy. But how do you feed them? Well, it’s all about building ecosystems from the ground up that benefit hundreds of species. Over the large, constructed meadow, kestrels often hover, hunting for bird food in the form of rodents. And here, swift and barn swallows swirl about in search of insects. Now that’s what you call truly impressive bird feeding! Photo by Jan Wester.
The barn swallow will never come to a bird feeder with seeds or mealworms. If there aren't enough wild flying insects, at least one of these chicks will starve to death. A small drama that no one notices or develops a closer connection to. Buying organic, supporting Swedish natural pastures, and creating your own meadow or wetland are the best ways to feed barn swallow chicks. Photo: Lars E Johansson.
Indeed, feeding birds can spark a broader interest in nature – but we are concerned about the rhetoric in most texts about bird feeding, which exuberantly discuss the need to be concerned for "the birds," but do not actually mean it. There is a risk that we end up in a bubble where it is acceptable to maintain a very sterile garden and then provide a couple of species with lots of bird food year-round, believing that we are doing nature a favor. It becomes somewhat like a zoo where certain species are included, but the vast majority are entirely excluded.
Read more about these discussions in myth 9 and 14.
How can we help more bird chicks survive? And at the same time, benefit the entirety of nature?
If you want to be kind to insects and the birds in agricultural landscapes that are truly struggling, such as skylarks, curlews, wheatears, and lapwings, it's essential to always choose organic. Not to feed them, but to allow them to live! That's how we think at Slåttergubben, at least. We genuinely care about all birds, so it would be extremely foolish of us to buy sprayed food for you customers to give to the birds.
Meat has gotten an undeserving bad reputation recently. Dairy products typically slip through the meat debate, and there's a difference between types of meat. We need to buy more quality meat from Swedish natural grazing lands and drastically reduce meat from animals that stand and don't contribute to that (pigs, poultry, eggs, and much of the conventional beef). We need more meat from natural grazing lands—they must increase—not keep disappearing as they are now. It's catastrophic for many insects, plants, and especially birds like honey buzzards and shrikes. So buy Swedish organic beef and lamb. Swedish organic (and inorganic) dairy products also contribute to natural grazing lands, but unfortunately to a lesser extent—the trend is that dairy farms are becoming larger, and there's less and less grazed land for each liter of milk you buy. It's better to reduce your consumption of dairy products and increase the amount of quality meat.
Natural pastures are extremely important – buy meat from animals that have definitely grazed on them! Photo by Emil Nilsson.
Create more biodiversity on the land you have influence over - more dead wood, composts, leaf piles, natural ponds, soil exposed patches, sand piles, more flowering plants, and especially meadows. This most fantastic form of bird feeding becomes an insect factory for swallows and other birds in your garden. Swallows and many other insectivores will not come to eat mealworms, no matter how nicely they are presented. Insect hotels can be nice, but you do NOT need to buy them; you can make your own! Additionally, they are often poorly designed with holes that are too big, and you end up with a hole in your wallet. Insect hotels are like birdhouses - they do not contribute to biodiversity. It has to be built from the ground up and not purchased in the form of trendy items that suit only a select few species. Instead, drill some deep holes in a log - holes that are 2-4mm wide are the most important and attract the most species. In a functioning ecosystem, these holes naturally occur in dead wood, etc... Do you live in the countryside? Then you can rent a piece of land from a neighboring farmer to create diversity - establish a meadow along your walking path or wetlands. Your surroundings will shine! Communicate - it's well-invested money for balance in nature!
Do you live in the city? Influence your municipality to establish more meadows in areas not used for better purposes.
At Slåttergubben, we firmly believe that this is how you feed the birds in the summer – isn’t it beautiful?! Right here, it’s a kind of meadow that Janne (Slåttergubben) digs into a little each year to preserve plants that need disturbed and exposed soil to survive in the long run. Poppies, cornflowers, campion, and viper’s bugloss, for example. Photo by Jan Wester.
Then, of course, it's good for the balance of nature to live in a generally environmentally friendly way, work less, do more things yourself, repair items, and cycle more. Live with others to save money and living space. Vote for a party that prioritizes biodiversity. Support a newspaper that prioritizes sustainability. Get involved voluntarily in a company, organization, or party that wants change. Travel sustainably... you know the drill. A sustainable society and lifestyle contribute to more insects, birds, and balance in nature.
Good luck with your summer bird feeding!
Psst... It's not wrong to feed the birds a little in the summer too - but remember that building ecosystems from the ground up is the most important thing! Dare to let go of control and see what happens when you invite nature's wonderful diversity to you. Because you will be rewarded with a deeper type of relationship that does not depend on constantly forking out money to an external company; now, you are the one in charge. You are building a vital organization where you don't even know the names of all your coworkers!
