Written by Linda Hendricks Spence, BirdingBeyondtheFieldGuide.com
Photo of American Goldfinch by Dan Streiffert
We have a feeder for Nyjer seed* hanging in our backyard. Like many of you throughout the U.S., here in central Illinois, we have American Goldfinches in our yard and at our feeders. If you live in our western states, you could also have Lesser Goldfinches. Both goldfinches relish Nyjer seed.
This past February, my husband opened a new bag of Nyjer seed, filled that feeder, and ….. nothing. Up to this point, goldfinches had been using that feeder every day for months. He waited a week, dumped the feeder, put in new seed from the same bag, but still nothing. Not one single goldfinch. He repeated this for several weeks and even though he dumped and refilled the feeder every week, the goldfinches ignored the feeder. They came to the sunflower seed feeder, but not this feeder. What happened?
We decided to stop by our favorite small store which sells only bird supplies and is about an hour drive from our house. We have been shopping at this store for years and have never been disappointed or gotten bad advice. Some of our feeders come from them as does our heated birdbath (the birdy hot tub!). But we rarely buy seed from them. We buy all our seed here in our small town at a much larger business that specializes in selling seed to farmers and feed for livestock. Good prices for bird seed and we like to support our local businesses.
The woman we spoke with explained that first of all, goldfinches are picky eaters. She continued by explaining most seeds can be bought just about anywhere and it is not a problem. The time spent in their bags on store shelves is not too important. While you would not want to purchase a bag of sunflower seeds that is dusty and looks like it has been on the shelf since the beginning of time, most seeds hold up fairly well. But Nyjer seed does not. It has a definite, short, shelf life. She thought that maybe our normal place to buy bird seed carries it for only a small percentage of their customers. They order big bags in large numbers. She felt a small store only selling bird supplies is better able to track how fast the bags of Nyjer seed are selling. She explained at her store, they actually track the shelf life of their bags of Nyjer and only order as much as they think they can sell in a limited period – and they get a delivery of bird seed every week to restock their shelves.
She recommended buying smaller bags of Nyjer Seed and filling the feeders about half full. Buy only what birds will use in a 6-8 week period. This keeps the seed fresher. Store the seed in an air-tight container and avoid storing it in a warm garage or shed in the summer. She also recommended a blend of Nyjer Seed and bits of shelled sunflower seeds which the goldfinches at this store’s feeder love. She convinced us. We bought a bag to try and discarded the Nyjer seed we had – and that the goldfinches had not touched in weeks. And even though this smaller bag was more expensive at this small store, it is certainly a better deal than buying a larger, less expensive bag, and having to discard all of it. She warned us that it could take the goldfinches a few weeks to discover the change. Luckily it did not – our goldfinches began using the feeder the day after we filled it.
So, what exactly is Nyjer seed? Is it thistle seed? No, it is actually Nyjer seed. Many people – including us – still sometimes refer to it as ‘thistle seed’ but that is incorrect. Nyjer is not seed that grows into the thistle plants with which we are familiar. Nyjer seed is from the small, high-oil seed plant Guizotia abyssinica. This plant is a member of the Daisy Family and it is native to Ethiopia and India. It is not related to the thistles we find in North America. Our thistles are from the plant genus Circium and are in the Sunflower Family.
Nyjer seeds were called ‘thistle seeds’ in North America by companies marketing bird seed. In North America, it is common knowledge amongst birders that all finches – especially goldfinches – eat thistle seeds right off the seed heads in meadows, prairies, and grasslands. ‘Nyjer’ was an unknown word to Americans with bird feeders. Marketing people made the decision to call Nyjer seed ‘thistle seed’ in order to sell more bags of seed – birders would automatically associate the seed with finches. Marketers – you have to admire their chutzpah! And it worked. I have stocked feeders with ‘thistle seed’ for years!
If you find the goldfinches in your neighborhood are not coming to your feeders stocked with Nyjer seed, consider changing where you buy your bags, buy smaller bags, and do not store the bags in hot garages or sheds. There are few finer sights than watching goldfinches – with the males in their breeding plumages – all over your feeders and just munching away. And isn’t that our goal – happy, well-fed birds? And for us to have big smiles on our faces as we watch?
*All the finches in your neighborhood will come to your feeders for Nyjer Seed. Depending on where you live, besides both goldfinches, look for: House Finches, Purple Finches, Pine Siskins, and Common Redpolls.
