Dirty feeders spread diseases
Throughout the year, many birds rely on the fruit, nuts and seeds people leave out in garden feeders and on bird tables. In winter, birds need high-fat food to help them maintain fat reserves to survive the cold weather. During the summer, especially while moulting (losing feathers and growing new ones), birds need food that is high in protein. Now, a study has found that garden bird feeders might be spreading diseases.
The investigation, carried out by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the British Trust for Ornithology and Fera Science, studied reports on the health of wild birds over the past 25 years. When that information was combined with results from RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch, scientists noticed big changes in the population of some British birds – including a dramatic drop in Britain’s breeding greenfinches because of a disease known as finch trichomonosis.
Scientists believe the spread of diseases such as this one could be due to dirty bird feeders. It’s thought that the build-up of droppings and stale food in feeders could be making birds ill. Additionally, when birds congregate at feeders they may come into contact with species and diseases that they wouldn’t normally be exposed to in the wild, and against which they have no immunity. Communal feeding allows diseases to be spread more easily and quickly.
Becki Lawson, the lead author of the study, says she hopes it will give people a better understanding of how diseases are passed between birds.