Also called snowbird, the Dark eyed Junco is a small bird at 5 inches height. The males are colored gray to black with white underbellies while the females are lighter colored with white underbellies as well. The younger ones look like the female but have streaked colors that fade away as they mature. The Dark eyed Junco is also called snowbird because it is one of the rare birds that like cold weather. You’ll know that winter is near when Juncos appear in your yard. When they disappear, you know spring is coming.
The diet of the Dark eyed Junco mainly consists of seeds and corn. During summers though, they like to eat insects as well such as beetles, ants, caterpillars, grasshoppers, spiders, and bugs. They also like seeds of weed plants like ragweed, bristle grass, drop seed grass, crabgrass, pigweed, and goosefoot.
One feeder that works well in the feeding of the Dark eyed Junco is the ground tray feeder that is sturdy yet lightweight and easy to move. Remember to put a lot of corn and sunflower seeds on your ground tray feeder. It is also beneficial to put a bottom screen on the feeder to aid drainage.