Region guide · US Northeast

Backyard Birds of the Northeast

Q: Why did the birds suddenly stop coming to my feeder?

It's almost always temporary. The usual causes are a big natural food crop nearby, a hawk hunting the yard for a few days, or seed that has gone stale or moldy. Refresh the seed, clean the feeder, and give it a week or two.

Who visits feeders in New England and the Mid-Atlantic — Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont — how to recognize each bird, and what to put out for them.

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The 15 birds you'll actually see

These are the fifteen birds you're most likely to meet at a feeder across the Northeast — from Maine and Vermont down through New York and Pennsylvania. For each one you'll find how to tell it apart, the food it favors, and the feeder that suits it best. Get a few of these right and your window becomes a front-row seat.

Northern Cardinal

Cardinalis cardinalis

How to spot it: There's no mistaking the male — glowing red from crest to tail with a black mask around a heavy orange bill. The female is quieter but just as elegant: warm tan with red brushed along her wings, tail, and crest. Cardinals stay all year and are often the first to arrive at first light and the last to leave at dusk.

Food: black-oil sunflower, safflower, striped sunflower

Feeder: a roomy hopper or platform where they can stand and face forward; happy on the ground, too

Blue Jay

Cyanocitta cristata

How to spot it: Big, brash, and impossible to ignore — a crested bird in blue, black, and white that usually turns up with family in tow and a loud call to announce it. Handsome, but it tends to scatter smaller birds when it drops in.

Food: whole peanuts, sunflower seed, cracked corn

Feeder: a sturdy platform or hopper; a deck railing works well for peanuts in the shell

Black-capped Chickadee

Poecile atricapillus

How to spot it: A tiny, round bundle of energy with a black cap and bib, white cheeks, and a soft gray back — and the cheery “chick-a-dee-dee-dee” that gives it away. Among the boldest of feeder birds; with patience, some will feed from an outstretched hand.

Food: black-oil sunflower, suet, peanuts

Feeder: tube and hopper feeders and suet cages; grabs a single seed and darts off to crack it

Tufted Titmouse

Baeolophus bicolor

How to spot it: Soft silvery-gray with a pale belly, a peach blush on the sides, big dark eyes, and a perky crest. Usually travels with chickadees, and announces itself with a clear, whistled “peter-peter-peter.”

Food: black-oil sunflower, peanuts, suet

Feeder: tube and hopper feeders and suet cages; like chickadees, it carries seeds off to open

White-breasted Nuthatch

Sitta carolinensis

How to spot it: A trim little bird in white and blue-gray with a black cap — best known for a party trick no other feeder bird shares: it creeps head-first down tree trunks. Listen for its nasal “yank-yank.”

Food: sunflower hearts, suet, peanuts

Feeder: hopper feeders, suet cages, and tube feeders; it wedges seeds into bark to hammer them open

Downy Woodpecker

Dryobates pubescens

How to spot it: The smallest woodpecker around — barely sparrow-sized, in crisp black and white with a checkered back and a short, stubby bill. Males show a little red patch at the back of the head; females don't.

Food: suet, black-oil sunflower, peanuts

Feeder: suet cages above all, plus tube and hopper feeders; it clings as it feeds

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Melanerpes carolinus

How to spot it: A striking mid-sized woodpecker with a boldly barred black-and-white back and a red cap sweeping down the nape — the faint reddish “belly” it's named for is easy to miss. Bigger and flashier than the Downy, with a rolling “churr.”

Food: suet, sunflower seed, peanuts

Feeder: suet cages, plus hopper and platform feeders sturdy enough to hold its weight

Carolina Wren

Thryothorus ludovicianus

How to spot it: A small, plump, warm reddish-brown bird with a bold white eyebrow and a tail it often holds cocked upright. Astonishingly loud for its size, ringing out a “tea-kettle, tea-kettle.” A year-round resident, more common toward the southern end of the Northeast.

Food: suet, peanuts, mealworms

Feeder: suet cages and platform feeders; also pokes around nooks for insects

American Goldfinch

Spinus tristis

How to spot it: In summer the male is unmistakable — a splash of lemon-yellow with black wings and a black cap. Come winter, both sexes dim to a soft olive-buff, so don't expect gold year-round. Small, with a bounding, up-and-down flight.

Food: nyjer (thistle), sunflower hearts

Feeder: small-port thistle tubes or nyjer socks; feeds calmly, often in little flocks

House Finch

Haemorhous mexicanus

How to spot it: The male wears a rosy-red wash over his head and chest that fades into brown, streaky sides; the female is plain brown with soft streaking. Sociable birds that arrive in chattering groups and sing a bright, tumbling warble.

Food: black-oil sunflower, nyjer, sunflower hearts

Feeder: tube and hopper feeders; they'll happily crowd a single feeder together

Dark-eyed Junco

Junco hyemalis

How to spot it: A tidy little sparrow, slate-gray on top and clean white below, with a pale pink bill and white tail edges that flash as it flies. Known as the “snowbird” because it turns up across the Northeast for fall and winter, feeding in neat flocks on the ground.

Food: white proso millet, black-oil sunflower, cracked corn

Feeder: ground and low platform feeders; prefers seed scattered beneath the feeder

White-throated Sparrow

Zonotrichia albicollis

How to spot it: A smart-looking brown sparrow marked by a bright white throat, bold striped crown, and a dab of yellow between the eye and bill. A cool-season visitor whose clear whistle is often written as “Oh-sweet-Canada-Canada.”

Food: white proso millet, black-oil sunflower, cracked corn

Feeder: ground and platform feeders; it scratches for seed under shrubs and feeders

Song Sparrow

Melospiza melodia

How to spot it: A streaky brown sparrow whose chest streaks gather into a single dark central spot — a handy field mark. True to its name, it's a fine singer, delivering a bright, musical tune from an open perch. Present much of the year across the region.

Food: white proso millet, black-oil sunflower, cracked corn

Feeder: ground and low platform feeders; mostly works the spilled seed below

Mourning Dove

Zenaida macroura

How to spot it: A soft gray-brown dove with a slim body, small head, black wing spots, and a long tapering tail. Its gentle cooing is often taken for an owl, and its wings whistle sharply when it flushes. Almost always feeds on the ground.

Food: white proso millet, cracked corn, sunflower seed

Feeder: ground and low platform feeders; it tidies up seed dropped by other birds above

American Robin

Turdus migratorius

How to spot it: The familiar upright thrush with a warm orange breast, dark gray back, and yellow bill — usually seen tugging worms from the lawn rather than at a seed feeder. Still, it will stop by for fruit and mealworms, especially during a cold snap.

Food: mealworms, fruit, sunflower hearts

Feeder: platform and ground feeders; rarely bothers with tube or hopper seed feeders

A year at your Northeast feeder

Winter (December – February)

The busy season. Natural food is scarce, so feeders get steady traffic: chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, cardinals, woodpeckers, and juncos. Keep suet out for the woodpeckers, and refill after every snowfall — birds need the calories most right after a storm.

Spring (March – May)

Migration turns the yard over. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds return in late April and early May — have a nectar feeder out by the last week of April (plain 1:4 sugar water, no red dye). Baltimore Orioles arrive in early May and will visit orange halves and grape jelly. Goldfinches molt into their bright summer yellow.

Summer (June – August)

Seed feeders often go quiet — insects and wild seed are everywhere — but this is fledgling season: watch for clumsy young cardinals and jays being fed by their parents. A clean birdbath draws more birds in summer than any feeder. Goldfinches nest late, so keep the nyjer fresh into August.

Fall (September – November)

Hummingbirds head south by late September — leave the nectar feeder up for about two weeks after you see the last one. Juncos and White-throated Sparrows return with the first cold nights of October. It's the perfect time to scrub your feeders and stock up on seed for the season ahead.

A simple starter setup

Start with one feeder, one seed. A tube or hopper feeder filled with black-oil sunflower covers most of the list above — cardinals, chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, and finches.
Add suet for the cold months. An inexpensive suet cage brings in every woodpecker in the neighborhood, plus nuthatches and chickadees.
Offer water. A shallow dish or birdbath works all year and attracts birds that never touch seed — like robins.
Mind the window. Place feeders either within 3 feet of the glass or more than 30 feet away — the in-between distances cause the most window strikes.
Keep it clean. Every couple of weeks, empty the feeder, wash it with hot soapy water, and let it dry fully before refilling. Clean feeders keep your visitors healthy.

Common questions

When should I start feeding birds in the Northeast?

Any time — there's no wrong month to hang a feeder. Traffic is heaviest from November through March, when natural food is scarce, so fall is the classic time to start. Birds may need a week or two to discover a new feeder; that's normal.

Do I need to take my feeders down in summer?

In most suburban yards, no — feeding is fine year-round. The exception is bear country: in northern New England, upstate New York, and much of rural Pennsylvania, state wildlife agencies recommend taking feeders down from about April through November.

When do hummingbirds arrive in the Northeast?

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds — the only hummingbird that nests in the Northeast — return from late April to mid-May. Have a nectar feeder out by the last week of April: four parts water to one part plain white sugar, no dye.

Why did the birds suddenly stop coming to my feeder?

It's almost always temporary. The usual causes: a big natural food crop nearby, a hawk hunting the yard for a few days, or seed that has gone stale or moldy. Refresh the seed, clean the feeder, and give it a week or two. For a full step-by-step checklist, see Why Aren't Birds Coming to My Feeder?

What's the single best seed to start with?

Black-oil sunflower. It has a thin shell small birds can open easily and a high oil content, and it's the favorite of cardinals, chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, and finches alike. If you buy only one bag, buy that.

Keep this guide by the window

The free Backyard Birds of the Northeast PDF puts all 15 birds, their favorite foods, and the month-by-month calendar on a few printable pages.

Download the Free Guide

Free to download. No email required.

Keep reading: see exactly which food brings in which birds, learn how to make your yard a cardinal favorite, win the age-old war with squirrel-proof feeding, or try hand-feeding a chickadee.