Wagner's Songbird Supreme is the best mixed bird seed for wild birds.
Mixed bird seed is composed of several different varieties of seeds.
(I often prefer just one type of seed to a feeder to attract just certain birds. For instance, Black oil sunflower seeds for finches and chickadees. Or safflower seeds for cardinals. Or Niger seeds for goldfinches.)
But for general bird feeding, all-types of birds welcome, mixed bird seed in a hopper feeder is the simplest way to go.
Wagner's Songbird Supreme Premium Wild Bird Food is my favorite choice for mixed bird seed. It's what I buy. (Purchase through Amazon, here.)
This is the perfect bird seed for setting up your first bird feeder. Read my article on setting up a bird feeder.
![]() |
Look at all the sunflower seeds! No filler! |
Ingredients
Songbird Supreme is 50% sunflower seeds: black oil, striped, and hulled chips.
Read my article on different kinds of sunflower seeds for birds.
Sunflower seeds are the favorite seeds of almost all seed eating birds. House Finches, American Goldfinches, Black-capped Chickadees, and White-breasted Nuthatches love black oil sunflower seeds. These are the birds I most want at my feeder.
For some of the smaller sparrows, it has white proso millet, a favorite of juncos, white-crowned sparrows, and towhees.
The Songbird Supreme also has a few safflower seeds and peanut kernels.
Northern Cardinals love safflower seeds. Chickadees will also eat it.
Peanuts are a favorite of jays, nuthatches and woodpeckers. (Wagner's product page is here.)
But, really, it is the combination of black oil sunflower seeds and white proso millet that makes this Wagner's Songbird Supreme brand my clear choice for the title of best bird food.
Read my article discussing sunflower seeds and white millet as attracting the most birds.
No wasted bird seed filler!
To save money, many bird seed brands contain filler: cheap seeds and grains that most birds don't eat. It is chicken scratch. If you're feeding a bunch of wild quail and doves on the ground, then, sure, this is what you want. But not in your bird feeder.
Wagner's Songbird Supreme bird food has absolutely no filler!
Examples of filler seeds you don't want in your bird seed mixture includes cracked corn, wheat, oats, and especially red milo.
Many of the cheap mixed bird seeds contain red milo. Some varieties of bird seed contain up to 40% milo! This seed only favored by the non-native--and very messy--House Sparrows. California Quail and Mourning Doves also eat it.
Birds often throw milo out on the ground trying to get to something better. Then it sprouts and starts a new mess.
Read my related article: 14 Tips to keep bird seed from sprouting in your lawn.
No cheap milo in the Songbird Supreme mix. Very nice.
Another cheap filler seed is cracked corn. Jays, doves, and quail like this. Other birds will leave it to last, if they eat it at all. Wagner's Songbird Supreme doesn't have any of this space-waster.
What birds eat cracked corn? Read my article.
Here is a link for the Songbird Supreme:
Here is a link to a hopper feeder I like:
Here is a link to some black oil sunflower seed, the one single type of seed that attracts the most birds:
I've read that rats don't care for this seed. Is that true? I now have a rat infestation from feeding birds.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I don't know of any bird foods that rats won't eat.
DeleteIf you have rat problem, the best recommendation I have is to stop feeding the birds. Clean up any other sources that attract them. Once the rats are gone, try again later.
See my article on making bird feeding less messy.
https://www.whatbirdsareinmybackyard.com/2021/04/end-mess-of-feeding-wild-birds.html
HOW WILL I KNOW IF THIS HAPPENS TO ME? WHAT ARE THE SIGNS??? Oh My gosh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would be Horrified if rats became a problem for me!!!!! i have had a rat indoor infestation once and it was a nightmare!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 And to stop feeding my little feathered friends, would really really upset me!!!!! I wake up to them being fed 2 feet away from my window! And newting qll over my back patio around the corner to my other bedroom window!!! I have a bad back and spend lots of time lying on my bed on my side, sl close to watching my friends!!! How will I know IF I have a rat problem???????????
DeleteDanna,
Deletebird food only tends to show up a rat problem that already exists.
Does your property or neighbors have dilapidated, abandoned buildings or cars, piles of trash?
There are outdoor rat traps you could set up and see.
Don't over-feed. Keep seed spills under the feeder cleaned up. Use hanging tube feeders, rather than hopper or platform feeders.