Attracting tanagers to your backyard can be a rewarding challenge for bird lovers. These colorful songbirds, including species like the Scarlet Tanager, Summer Tanager, and Western Tanager, to the United States each year, arriving in the spring and summer to breed. Unlike common backyard birds that readily visit feeders for seeds, tanagers primarily feed on insects and fruit, making them a bit trickier to attract. However, with the right food sources, habitat, and a little patience, you can increase your chances of spotting these striking birds in your yard.
How To Attract Tanagers
Five tanager species regularly visit the U.S. during the spring and summer. Unlike many backyard birds, they won’t be lured in by birdseed or birdhouses. Instead, use these seven tips to cater to their specific preferences and increase your chances of attracting them.
1. Offer Fresh Fruits
Seeds are a very small part of a tanagers normal diet, so regular backyard seed feeders are unlikely to interest them. One thing tanagers do love is fruit! When it comes to offering fruits at a backyard bird feeder, two of the easiest things to put out are oranges sliced in half, and small dishes of grape jelly. These are the same foods that can lure in orioles, so getting an oriole feeder can serve a dual purpose.
The North American tanagers tend to rely on fruits more in the fall and winter. During spring and summer their main focus is insects. However, when they first arrive back in the spring, they are low on energy from a long migration, and insects may not yet be plentiful. So early spring can be one of the best times to catch them when they are hungry and willing to try out more available food sources before disappearing to the treetops. Make sure your fruit feeders are out early in the season so you don’t miss them.
Moving the food into trees may also be helpful. Tap a long nail into a reachable branch with most of the nail sticking up. Then push and orange half onto the nail to create a simple orange holder. Having the fruit in a tree rather than at a busy bird feeding station may make the tanagers feel more secure and more willing to investigate.