during the winter i have almost all my seed feeders and suet and a couple stumps in a tree or on the ground just feet from the kitchen window wihich faces the back yard. not too hard to shovel to them when we get dumped on with snow.
but summer i put the hummingbird and the oriole feeder and a fruit platform in the tree just outside, But put the hopper feeder and the tube feeder and a cage seed feeder with tray out away from the housr maybe 30 foot from the window, I can't keep the blackbirds away but they do stay more on the outer tree and feeders and eat from the ground under it. with the snows this winter i could not shovel feet of snow to the outer tree. Most of the small winter birds will be leaving here this moth or earlt april. The starlings have mostly left but i get lots of red wing blackbirds in spring and summer. my favorites the orioles come back in mid to late april.

I always move my feeders further out for summer, and back to the deck in the winter for the convenience of filling and watching. The only feeder I keep on my deck in the summer is the hummingbird feeder. Congratulations on your Chickadee nesting. That should be a great deal of fun for you. My early nesting of Chickadees last year fledged 6 young.

Anyone who believes the birds winter survival is conditioned upon their bird feeders is fooling no one but themselves.

We who enjoy watching birds erect feeders, bird baths, nesting boxes, roosting boxes, dusting stations and other items that improve the local habitat in our yards in an effort to attract birds, but lacking such assistance from us the birds will still manage quite well.

If the truth were told our bird feeders have about the same impact on the birds continued survival as a local fast food restaurant has on your families survival. Think about it, we can either pop into KFC, Mickey D's or the local pizza joint or we can go to the grocery, then go home and cook for ourselves, but in the end, your families survival would not be threatened if the fast food joints all closed today.

The same is true of the birds. They know where the natural weeds and seed producing plants are, and they could commute around in the same manner as we go grocery shopping, or they can simply stop by your feeders and grab the fast food.

In fact, after watching the birds closely for 8 to 10 hours a day all winter I have come to realize that birds seem to have the ability to sense when a severe winter storm is coming and they disappear about a day before, no doubt moving to another area where food and weather will be more suitable.

Now, understanding that the bird feeders are solely to attract the birds for our viewing enjoyment it then stands that we must put them closer to the house in winter so we can view them out the windows from the comfort of our homes, but once the weather breaks and we begin to have more outdoor activity it makes perfect sense to move the feeders to a position a bit further away from the house where we can view them from our decks and porches, while still allowing enough distance that the birds can feel comfortable to stop by without being spooked by our presence.

The question then becomes, how far away must we move them? From my observation there is no hard and fast rule here. The key seems to be where to put them so the birds will feel comfortable? From my experience that depends a lot on our lifestyle. Since I retired when the weather is descent I spend countless hours quietly sitting in a lawn chair, camera in hand, or perhaps mounted on a tripod and the birds are so accustomed to my presence that I have actually had Chickadees land on me or perch proudly on top of my camera while I'm sitting there. One of my favorite places to sit is on the back steps, where I have a hummingbird feeder on a shepherds hook a mere 3 feet away.

On the other hand, at my sisters house they have children playing in the yard so they have to place their feeders further away so the birds are not threatened by the activity of the children.

Now here is a bit of information that I am sure many will find controversial. Three years ago we erected a large Bat House at the back corner of the yard, and every evening we saw a couple dozen bats fly out. Since then we have built five more bat houses which we have placed around the farm. Now I am sure that some are put off by the thought of bats, but I can assure you that since we started erecting bat houses we have seen a remarkable decrease in mosquitoes in the yard.

Anyone who believes the birds winter survival is conditioned upon their bird feeders is fooling no one but themselves.

We who enjoy watching birds erect feeders, bird baths, nesting boxes, roosting boxes, dusting stations and other items that improve the local habitat in our yards in an effort to attract birds, but lacking such assistance from us the birds will still manage quite well.

If the truth were told our bird feeders have about the same impact on the birds continued survival as a local fast food restaurant has on your families survival. Think about it, we can either pop into KFC, Mickey D's or the local pizza joint or we can go to the grocery, then go home and cook for ourselves, but in the end, your families survival would not be threatened if the fast food joints all closed today.

The same is true of the birds. They know where the natural weeds and seed producing plants are, and they could commute around in the same manner as we go grocery shopping, or they can simply stop by your feeders and grab the fast food.

In fact, after watching the birds closely for 8 to 10 hours a day all winter I have come to realize that birds seem to have the ability to sense when a severe winter storm is coming and they disappear about a day before, no doubt moving to another area where food and weather will be more suitable.

Now, understanding that the bird feeders are solely to attract the birds for our viewing enjoyment it then stands that we must put them closer to the house in winter so we can view them out the windows from the comfort of our homes, but once the weather breaks and we begin to have more outdoor activity it makes perfect sense to move the feeders to a position a bit further away from the house where we can view them from our decks and porches, while still allowing enough distance that the birds can feel comfortable to stop by without being spooked by our presence.

The question then becomes, how far away must we move them? From my observation there is no hard and fast rule here. The key seems to be where to put them so the birds will feel comfortable? From my experience that depends a lot on our lifestyle. Since I retired when the weather is descent I spend countless hours quietly sitting in a lawn chair, camera in hand, or perhaps mounted on a tripod and the birds are so accustomed to my presence that I have actually had Chickadees land on me or perch proudly on top of my camera while I'm sitting there. One of my favorite places to sit is on the back steps, where I have a hummingbird feeder on a shepherds hook a mere 3 feet away.

On the other hand, at my sisters house they have children playing in the yard so they have to place their feeders further away so the birds are not threatened by the activity of the children.

Now here is a bit of information that I am sure many will find controversial. Three years ago we erected a large Bat House at the back corner of the yard, and every evening we saw a couple dozen bats fly out. Since then we have built five more bat houses which we have placed around the farm. Now I am sure that some are put off by the thought of bats, but I can assure you that since we started erecting bat houses we have seen a remarkable decrease in mosquitoes in the yard.

Thanks Kendra, I appreciate your input. I too was planning to keep the hummingbird feeder closer to the house.

The chickadee family should be fun to watch, I saw mom cleaning the nestbox out yesterday (some grass I put in for the winter). I will keep everyone posted.

I agree that moving the feeders out further from the house is just fine Donna. I tend to keep my feeders close in to my house, mostly for my own viewing pleasure! I had a feeding station set up on my front porch for winter, and I have now moved most all of those feeders out to the yard. Some of them, I just cleaned and stored. I say you should do whatever works for you.
In re to lazypup: I think that bats are a fabulous idea! My neighbor erected a bathouse in her backyard for them last summer. Not sure it's seeing any use yet tho.

Thanks everyone for your input. Always good to hear other people'e perspectives and experiences -

On another note, forgot to mention - our Carolina wrens have been making themselves known more lately. They nested here on our property last summer. One day last week I heard absolutely the LOUDEST bird I've ever heard in our yard, singing - our carolina wren! Sitting in the crabapple tree, he was singing his little heart out; through the binocs I could watch his throat moving and his head held up toward the sun as he serenaded the whole neighborhood. (Probably singing "Here comes the sun"!) I have heard the wrens sing before, but not like this!

It is said that these birds are the loudest bird for their bodily volume. I believe it!

My feeders stay in the same spot year-round. But I have already reduced the food I put in the feeders, especially during the stretches of nice weather that we've had lately. Basically I keep the small tube feeder filled with BOSS, and put raw suet in a cage. The only time I put out the suet mix is when the Bluebirds come for a snack.

Lately there are many fewer birds coming to the feeders anyway, so they are clearly dispersing to other places. I assume this is because they have much more food available to forage for, and that they are pairing up and carving out territory. Also, there is a pair of Bluebirds that nest in a snag in my back yard and they have already had conflicts with the House Sparrows. When I stop feeding food the House Sparrows don't come around much. I haven't seen any Starlings lately either.

By the summer, I will stop feeding altogether (except occasional snacks for the Blues). The birds really don't need it then and the yard is rich habitat that offers lots of food sources (especially insects). There are tons of birds here all summer and honestly, it's a relief because I prefer to be gardening.

I know what you mean about the Carolina Wrens Donna. We have a pair here, and they certainly make their presence known!! I love em. Really spunky little things.

I love bats, they are one of the diverse mammal family. I miss seeing them since I moved.

I am thinking of putting up a hummingbird feeder. Any idea where to put it? I would like it closer to the house since they are small and hard to see.

Paul

Definitely put the hummer feeder right outside a window where you will be able to see the little charmers feed.