As soon as the temperatures drop into the minus range and the icy frost covers plants and trees, you quickly look for a way to warmth. While people make themselves comfortable inside with a cozy blanket and a hot drink, the animal city dwellers outside have to come to terms with the cold. As temperatures drop, food becomes scarce and this becomes a challenge for some animals. However, if you want to support birds, squirrels and other local animals outside during their wintering through supplementary feeding, you have to keep a few things in mind – because well-intentioned is not always well-done.
Tips for bird lovers
Birdhouses get dirty quickly, and you should also avoid suet balls in plastic nets. Feeding columns filled with grains are best suited for feeding.
(Photo: imago stock&people)
With feeding stations in the garden or on the balcony, you not only make it easier for local birds to find food – you can also observe them wonderfully up close. However, the classic wooden bird feeder is not the best choice, says biologist Angelika Nelson from State Association for Bird and Nature Conservation in Bavaria (LBV). This is because the birds are standing in their own food, which is unhygienic and can promote the spread of diseases among the animals. In order to avoid contamination of the seeds and grains, such a house should be cleaned daily, without the use of chemicals, of course.
Blackbirds actually eat beetles and worms, but when these are not available in winter, they also eat berries and fruit.
(Photo: Roland Weihrauch/dpa)
For less diligent bird lovers, Nelson recommends as an alternative a feeding column in which the food can slide and stay clean. Soft food eaters like blackbird or robin enjoy oatmeal, pieces of fruit, raisins and dried wild berries. Grain eaters such as chaffinches and sparrows are happy with grain mixtures or sunflower seeds and a bird bath. You can’t go wrong with the well-known fat ball, just the plastic net should be avoided. According to the biologist, suet balls or food cakes can easily be made at home by mixing fat with local seeds, dried fruits and nuts. “The more different varieties are incorporated into the food cake, the more different bird species can be observed at the feeders later,” says Nelson. However, none of this can replace a natural garden with natural food sources.
That’s how the squirrel likes it
A dark brown squirrel in winter fur eats a walnut on a tree stump. Every year, the rodents hoard up to 2,500 nuts and other seeds in tree hollows, cracks and in the ground as winter supplies.
(Photo: R. Mueller/Imago/blickwinkel)
At Squirrel opinions are divided. “Species protectionists say: no, not necessary. Animal rights activists say: yes, absolutely,” says Martina Gehret from Bavarian Nature Conservation Association. The small rodents hibernate. This means that every two to three days they leave their spherical nest – the so-called Kobel – to search for their buried food supplies using their memories and sense of smell. Every year they hoard up to 2,500 nuts and other seeds in tree hollows, cracks and in the ground as winter supplies.
Things become critical when they are covered by a thick layer of snow. City life can also make it difficult for squirrels to find food: there are no trees with their preferred food. In both cases it makes sense to feed them during the cold season. Only what? “Walnuts, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds and corn. Also: berries and mushrooms,” says Gehret. A clean and fresh water source is also important. The expert advises against feeding peanuts and almonds. Almonds contain hydrogen cyanide, which is toxic to squirrels, and peanuts mold quickly. Because of the bitter substances they contain, acorns are not a joy to eat. Practical when feeding squirrels: bird feeders are ideal for the cute rodents.
Please do not feed!
In autumn, hedgehogs look for sheltered places to overwinter. Once they are in hibernation, you should not disturb them because they do not need food.
(Photo: Catherina Hess)
Helping animals through the winter with supplementary feeding can sometimes do them more harm than good. The Hedgehog for example, feeding is not allowed during the cold winter months. Feeding it disrupts its five-month hibernation, which can last until April, and keeps it artificially awake. According to the Federal Nature Conservation Union, a lack of food is an important trigger for the wintering strategy. To hibernate, the insect eater beds itself in a heat-insulated, spherical nest made of hedges, piles of leaves and brushwood. To protect it, leaf piles should not be removed or destroyed. If you see an active hedgehog in winter, it is usually due to the destruction of its nest. Hedgehogs that voluntarily leave their safe homes during the winter are most likely sick. In this case, too, Andreas Zahn from the Bavarian Nature Conservation Association strongly advises against feeding: “Every hedgehog that is still out and about now has a problem other than a lack of food.” Instead, a sick animal needs expert help from one Hedgehog station or a veterinarian.
The same applies to other wild animals in the city. Also foxes, Raccoons or Bats should not be fed in winter. The feeding of Deer is generally prohibited for private individuals and can be punished with a fine – the ban serves animal protection. To save energy in the cold season, deer and deer reduce their body temperature and slow their heart rate. The digestive tract shrinks and the animals usually only eat fiber-rich food such as dry grass and blackberry leaves. This natural process can be disrupted by additional feeding. In addition, the four-legged friends reduce their metabolism, making them more susceptible to disturbances and should not be startled. If they have to invest all their energy in escaping, it can lead to a heart attack.
Unfortunately, there are still thoughtless people who feed city pigeons out of a misunderstood love of animals. This is prohibited in Munich under threat of a fine, as various prohibition signs indicate.
(Photo: Peter Kneffel/dpa)
You most often encounter them in the city Pigeons. Even if the birds seek proximity to humans – it is for good reasons forbidden to feed them. Otherwise they become dependent, always go to the same places and cause hygiene problems and massive amounts of pollution. Each pigeon drops around twelve kilos of droppings per year; there are currently up to 100,000 pigeons in Munich. Anyone can imagine what that means: just removing the excrement costs cities, municipalities and homeowners an enormous amount of money. In addition, pigeons carry more than 100 different pathogens that can in principle also be dangerous to humans. That’s why some call city pigeons rats of the air. Because of the plague, there has been a ban on feeding pigeons in Munich since 2018, and violations could result in a fine. In order to regulate the population, pigeon houses exist in many locations: here pigeon eggs are removed during the breeding season and replaced with plaster eggs.
The geese, which are increasingly multiplying because of the additional feeding from walkers, are becoming a nuisance. In summer, their feces contaminate green spaces and bathing waters, and feeding them is also not good for the animals themselves.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Ducks, Geese and swans They don’t have the puppy eyes, but they can beg at least as well. The same applies here: remain steadfast. The waterbirds’ natural food sources are easily accessible to them, usually even in winter. Through frequent contact with people, waterfowl lose their natural shyness and become easy prey for dogs, for example. The animals get used to the feeding area and pollute the green areas with their droppings. Anyone who throws bread into water should know that its salt content causes the birds’ stomachs to swell. Bread that is not eaten sinks to the ground and rots. This process uses oxygen, which the fish then lack. Algae can also grow quickly. The result: the body of water “tips over”. Usually there are signs indicating that feeding is prohibited. Anyone who does not comply can also be asked to pay by the city.