How To Attract Cardinals

Cardinals are some of the most popular songbirds. They often can be heard throughout the day serenading one another. Males are a bright red color, females have a dull reddish brown color, both sexes have a feathery crest atop their head. Attracting Cardinals to your yard can be relatively easy. Since they reside in more than half of the US, this is a popular and simple bird to attract. The bright red colored plumage is a popular attractant and the males are especially colorful. You must have a correctly styled and appropriately sized feeder to boost your success at attracting this bright red bird.

The feeder style considered best for a cardinal is called a fly-through type. This allows the birds to enter one side of the feeder and exit the opposite side. Any open platform style feeder will attract this gorgeous bird. Feeders may be placed on the ground, pole mounted or hung from a rope. Cardinals prefer a medium height on the feeders and houses. Because cardinals are fairly clumsy birds in comparison to others they seem to prefer a solidly structured feeder. Any open platform feeder will work but the fly through type feeder is certainly the most favored choice. Many times you will see cardinals picking around the ground under the feeder, most likely picking through larger seeds that the smaller birds dropped.

Pass through or fly through bird feeders come in a variety of sizes. Basically they are an open platform feeder with a roof typically supported by vertical sides. Any fly through feeder will work for cardinals but they have a tendency to prefer smaller sized feeders.  A feeder with a short roof height and vertical supports positioned close together creates a more confined and safer feeling area, which may contribute to the preference. As with all birds attracting them requires creating a safe area to roost and rest.

The cardinal is a voracious and early feeder and is normally one of the first to arrive and the last to leave; setting up a feeder to attract them can be very rewarding. Cardinals can be territorial and aggressive toward other birds at your feeders, fortunately they often give in and allow other birds to share the feeders. Since Cardinals are not migratory birds and very rarely drift more than a few miles from their nest. If you create a habitat that is attractive to them, you can have cardinals residing in your yard or garden for many years.