Restaurateurs know that attracting the right type of customers depends upon the season and the menu. The same holds true for feeding birds, says a wildlife expert in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. However, that can become expensive, and most birds find more than enough food in the wild during the summer. Brittingham says homeowners should realize that a single bird feeder will not attract every bird in their landscape. These simple feeders often are nothing more than a pile of seed on a flat board.
More elaborate models have a roof.
Ground-feeding birds such as cardinals, sparrows and juncos prefer platform feeders. These feeders fill from the top and seeds flow down to the bottom where birds can remove them. Some types hang and feature perches. Shaped like a tube, this style features small perches, attracting smaller birds such as chickadees, titmice and finches. Suet feeders offer suet, a type of animal fat, in a wire box or basket.