Northern mockingbirds are a familiar sight across much of North America. These intelligent and energetic birds are known for their ability to mimic the songs of other birds, and their willingness to boldly defend their nests and territories from predators or intruders. Though common in many urban and suburban areas, northern mockingbirds are less frequently seen visiting bird feeders than other backyard species. This leads many people to wonder – do northern mockingbirds visit feeders at all?
Quick Answer
Northern mockingbirds do visit bird feeders, though they are not frequent or regular feeder visitors in most areas. Mockingbirds are primarily insectivores that prefer to forage for live prey. With enough insects and fruit available, they may not be motivated to visit feeders. However, northern mockingbirds will readily visit feeders for high-energy seeds, nuts, suet, mealworms, or fruit when their preferred natural foods are harder to find.
Northern Mockingbird Diet
The northern mockingbird’s diet consists primarily of insects and spiders, but also includes fruits and berries. Key prey items include grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, ants, wasps, and caterpillars. Fruits and berries make up a larger portion of the diet in fall and winter after insects become less available. Northern mockingbirds are omnivorous and opportunistic, meaning they will sample a wide variety of foods depending on seasonal and local availability.
Common fruits eaten by northern mockingbirds include mulberries, wild grapes, blackberries, figs, citrus fruits, pyracantha berries, juniper berries, and more. They may also eat flower nectar and drink sap from holes drilled by sapsuckers. Less commonly, they may eat small lizards, frogs, or small snakes.
Northern mockingbirds prefer to find their own live insect prey. Their long legs and ability to run quickly along the ground help them capture insects and other arthropods in lawns or open fields. However, northern mockingbirds are adaptable in their feeding habits. If insect numbers decline, during cold weather for example, they will readily switch to eating fruits and making more use of feeders.
Do Northern Mockingbirds Use Bird Feeders?
Northern mockingbirds will visit feeders, though the frequency varies greatly by season, location, and availability of natural foods. Reports of mockingbirds at feeders are much more common during fall and winter months when insects and fruit are less available. In warmer months when insects are abundant, they are less likely to visit feeders.
In regions with cold winters, northern mockingbirds become regular feeder visitors while insects and native fruits are in short supply. Sunflower seeds, suet, peanuts, shelled nuts, and mealworms are nutritious high-energy foods northern mockingbirds will readily eat when they visit feeders. Some people also report mockingbirds eating sugary nectar from hummingbird feeders.
During spring and summer in warmer climates, northern mockingbirds are much less likely to visit feeders since they can obtain plenty of insects and fruit. However, they may still make occasional feeder visits to sample offered foods as part of their naturally opportunistic feeding strategy. Dependence on feeders increases again in fall as insect numbers decline.
In areas where northern mockingbirds live year-round or migrate short distances, mild winters may mean they can find enough insects and fruit to make feeder visits infrequent. However, almost all northern mockingbirds will include at least some feeder food in their diet during the year.
What Do Northern Mockingbirds Eat at Bird Feeders?
When northern mockingbirds visit feeders, here are the types of food they prefer:
- Black oil sunflower seeds
- Hulled sunflower hearts
- Suet and suet cakes or nuggets
- Chopped peanuts
- Shelled nuts such as almonds, pecans, walnuts
- Mealworms
- Raisins and currants
- Small fruit pieces
- Nectar from hummingbird feeders
In general, northern mockingbirds target foods at feeders that are high in fat and protein content. These foods provide lots of energy to fuel active birds through cold winters or periods of low natural food abundance. Soft fruits or mealworms also provide needed moisture.
Tips for Attracting Northern Mockingbirds to Feeders
Here are some tips to bring northern mockingbirds to your feeders:
- Offer sunflower seeds or suet – High fat content to fuel energy needs
- Supply mealworms – Provides both protein and moisture
- Include shelled nuts – Easy to eat and digest
- Provide chopped fruit and raisins – Preferred fruits that are soft
- Use wide, open platforms – Allows easy perching and feeding
- Avoid mixed seed blends – Prefers selecting desired seeds
- Use feeders near trees or shrubs – Feels protected from predators
- Clean feeders regularly – Discourages mold and bacteria
- Prevent crowding – Feels vulnerable in close quarters
Northern mockingbirds may not immediately spot new food sources at feeders. Allow some time for them to discover the feeders and feel safe using them. They often prefer platform feeders with good visibility over tall, enclosed tube feeders. Once they become accustomed to feeders, northern mockingbirds will return regularly for nutritious and convenient meals.
How Do Northern Mockingbirds Feed?
The northern mockingbird’s feeding behaviors match its active, versatile nature. These adaptable birds use a variety of foraging techniques to take advantage of available food sources.
When hunting live insect prey, northern mockingbirds often run along the ground or make short flights from a perch to capture spotted insects and spiders. They also commonly flutter just above the ground, flashing their wings open to disturb insects and expose them for capture.
In trees and shrubs, northern mockingbirds glean stationary or slow-moving insects from leaves and branches. They sometimes hang upside down or hover briefly while picking off insect prey. Northern mockingbirds are also quick to chase down insects trying to escape capture.
To catch flying insects, northern mockingbirds will make swift aerial pursuits from an observation perch, or sally forth to snatch insects directly from the air. They primarily use sight rather than smell or sound to locate insect prey.
When visiting feeders, northern mockingbirds employ an equally aggressive feeding strategy. They dominate platform or hopper feeders, rapidly picking out their preferred seeds while scatter any unwanted filler seeds. Northern mockingbirds will consumes nuts, mealworms, suet or fruit in quick, greedy gulps if the food source is abundant.
Northern mockingbirds also opportunistically drink liquid foods like nectar or sap. At hummingbird feeders, they perch on the rim and extend their neck to drain the sugar water. Sapsucker holes provide easy access to nutrient-rich sap to supplement their diet.
In general, northern mockingbirds are bold, determined foragers. They make use of a wide range of feeding techniques and food sources. This dietary flexibility and versatility helps explain their success across such a diversity of North American habitats.
What Time of Day Do Northern Mockingbirds Visit Feeders?
Northern mockingbirds are active throughout the day and do not restrict their feeding to any particular timeframe. However, their feeder visits often peak in the early morning and again in late afternoon leading up to dusk.
Reasons northern mockingbirds concentrate their feeder activity during the morning and evening hours include:
- Replenishing energy after the night and before sunset
- Taking advantage of poor visibility to avoid predators
- Increased insect activity enhances foraging during warmer parts of the day
- Avoiding competition or conflict with other feeder birds
Northern mockingbirds are quite territorial during the breeding season. Visiting feeders in the quieter early and late hours helps reduce aggressive encounters with competitors. This pattern is more commonly observed in warmer months when their territory defense is strongest.
In winter, northern mockingbirds may appear at feeders randomly throughout daylight hours. Harsh weather and food scarcity makes them less selective on timing. However, early morning and evening visits still tend to be more frequent than during mid-day.
Night-vision or low-light cameras aimed at bird feeders may detect northern mockingbirds arriving just before dawn to get first access to fresh food supplies. So while feeder visits are certainly not limited to early and late hours, northern mockingbirds do concentrate their feeding activity levels during those times in many cases.
Unique Behavior of Northern Mockingbirds at Feeders
Northern mockingbirds exhibit distinctive behaviors while feeding compared to many other feeder birds:
- Aggressive defense of food sources
- Rapid eating and high activity level
- Boldness toward humans or predators
- Territorial chasing of other birds
- Voracious appetite and greediness
- Fearless perching in vulnerable spots
- Confident claiming of prime perch or feeder access
- Willingness to feed on ground under feeders
The northern mockingbird’s aggressive attitude translates to its feeding habits. They are highly competitive around feeders and willing to physically chase off other birds that are too close for their comfort. Squirrels, cats, and other potential threats are met with loud alarm calls from an exposed, upright perch.
While feeding, northern mockingbirds display an urgency and gluttonous pace driven by their naturally high metabolism and activity level. They rapidly pick and swallow their favorite seeds or gulp down mouthfuls of fruits, nuts or mealworms in seconds. Then they immediately peruse the feeder for more.
Northern mockingbirds rarely hesitate to greedily consume any preferred food they encounter, whether defended by other birds or potentially risky. They feed boldly in exposed areas and readily return to feeders even when humans are nearby. This combination of aggression, fearlessness, and voracity makes the northern mockingbird unique among feeder birds.
Interactions with Other Birds at Feeders
The northern mockingbird’s feeding interactions with other bird species can often be antagonistic. As highly territorial birds, especially during the breeding season, mockingbirds are aggressive in defending local feeders:
- Chases other birds away by flying at them or pecking
- Squabbles with crows, jays, grackles over access
- Out-competes smaller species for prime perches
- Noisy alarms serve to startle and repel competitors
- Fights over preferred foods like sunflower seeds
- Guards fruit/mealworm feeders from sharing
However, northern mockingbirds are less likely to enter into prolonged physical fights. After the initial aggressive display, they usually return to feeding and allow most birds to keep some access to feeders. Exceptions are birds seen as direct threats like jays or crows that may be chased entirely from the area.
Outside of the breeding season, northern mockingbirds are more tolerant of other feeder birds, though still maintain dominant status. Their peak territorial behavior runs from late winter through summer. By fall, aggression toward other species declines.
Despite their pushy nature, northern mockingbirds do not typically monopolize feeders entirely. Smaller songbirds may adjust their habits to avoid conflict, while similar sized or larger birds are met with a swift but limited backlash. This balancing act allows northern mockingbirds to maximize their own intake while permitting other birds to share the resources.
Examples of Bird Species Chased by Northern Mockingbirds
- Crows
- Jays
- Grackles
- Robins
- Catbirds
- Thrushes
- Waxwings
- Woodpeckers
- Orioles
- Tanagers
Examples of Bird Species Tolerated by Northern Mockingbirds
- Chickadees
- Titmouse
- Nuthatches
- Finches
- Sparrows
- Doves
- Pigeons
Overall, northern mockingbirds are adaptable in their interactions with other feeder birds. They employ calculated aggression to protect resources, while not attempting to eliminate competition entirely. This balance helps promote continued access and minimize risky conflicts.
Do Northern Mockingbirds Migrate or Stay in Winter?
Northern mockingbirds migrate short distances or not at all depending on the individual. Some key facts about their migration patterns:
- Northern mockingbirds breed across much of the United States and southern Canada
- Populations in northern parts of breeding range migrate farther south
- Southern populations are often year-round residents
- Migrants vacate northern breeding areas in fall but only go as far south as needed for food and shelter
- Some mockingbirds choose to stay put and tough out winter where they nested if conditions allow
- Strong site fidelity means they return north to the same breeding sites each spring
The availability of winter food sources determines how far north mockingbirds can remain for the coldest months. Migrants may travel a few hundred miles south into the U.S. or northern Mexico.
Birds wintering in warmer southern regions are more likely to find adequate insect and fruit resources without visiting feeders. But mockingbirds that overwinter in cooler northern climates rely more heavily on feeders to get through harsh weather when other foods are scarce.
Banding studies show many individual northern mockingbirds use the same winter sites year after year. They often return to nest in the same territory where they were born as well. This combination of short migration distances and strong site fidelity accounts for substantial numbers of northern mockingbirds remaining through winter across much of their breeding range.
Conclusion
Northern mockingbirds are intelligent, adaptable birds that display unique and fascinating feeding behaviors. While not the most common visitors, they will readily come to feeders for nutritious seeds, fruits, and other energy-rich foods, especially during seasons when insects and wild fruits are less available. Their boldness and competitive aggression creates fascinating dynamics around bird feeders and offers the chance to observe their resourceful, energetic nature up-close.