YourBirdOasis
Well-known member
Grit is an often overlooked resource required by most birds to properly digest their food. Providing this essential resource near your bird feeders is a great way to make your feeding station a place where birds’ can get everything they need to stay healthy and will keep them coming back day after day.
A bird’s beak has no structure designed for chewing and breaking down hard pieces of food, such as a kernel of dried corn. Therefore, birds rely on a muscular organ called the gizzard to accomplish this mastication (the phase of digestion where food is mechanically broken down before entering the stomach and intestines). Birds will actually eat small stones and pieces of gravel to fill their gizzard, which helps to break food into smaller pieces as it is churned around inside the gizzard.
Different sized birds consume different pieces of grit. Therefore, to attract a wide range of birds, it’s best to provide different sized pieces of grit. For larger birds, aquarium gravel works great. Crushed gravel and construction grade sand (both of which can be bought very cheaply at home-supply stores) work great as grit for smaller birds. If you live in an area where you can easily collect a bunch of bivalve shells (from oysters, mussels, or clams) you can make your own grit. Simply but them in a durable bag or sock and give them a few good whacks with a hammer or rock.
Spread your grit out on your lawn near your bird feeders in a place where birds can easily find it. It works well to place it on an area that is slightly raised so puddles don’t collect around it when it rains. Birds always need grit, so keep it in good supply all year long.
Adding a supply of grit is a great way to make a well rounded feeding station that meets all of birds’ needs, follow these tips and you’ll surely keep your feather friends happy and healthy!
A bird’s beak has no structure designed for chewing and breaking down hard pieces of food, such as a kernel of dried corn. Therefore, birds rely on a muscular organ called the gizzard to accomplish this mastication (the phase of digestion where food is mechanically broken down before entering the stomach and intestines). Birds will actually eat small stones and pieces of gravel to fill their gizzard, which helps to break food into smaller pieces as it is churned around inside the gizzard.
Different sized birds consume different pieces of grit. Therefore, to attract a wide range of birds, it’s best to provide different sized pieces of grit. For larger birds, aquarium gravel works great. Crushed gravel and construction grade sand (both of which can be bought very cheaply at home-supply stores) work great as grit for smaller birds. If you live in an area where you can easily collect a bunch of bivalve shells (from oysters, mussels, or clams) you can make your own grit. Simply but them in a durable bag or sock and give them a few good whacks with a hammer or rock.
Spread your grit out on your lawn near your bird feeders in a place where birds can easily find it. It works well to place it on an area that is slightly raised so puddles don’t collect around it when it rains. Birds always need grit, so keep it in good supply all year long.
Adding a supply of grit is a great way to make a well rounded feeding station that meets all of birds’ needs, follow these tips and you’ll surely keep your feather friends happy and healthy!
