UK households are being urged to put grated cheese out in their gardens in January for birds.
The winter season can be a difficult time of the year for birds as their natural food sources are harder to access, but they need to find sustenance for energy and to build fat stores to help them keep warm.
Their usual source of berries, seeds and fruit become much more scarce during the colder months, while other foods such as live insects and worms can be harder to access as the ground is often hard or frozen over.
As such, gardeners can help birds survive the winter season by leaving food and water out for birds on a regular basis.
While food like bird seed, mealworms and dried fruits are good options to feed garden birds, wildlife experts also recommend putting grated cheese out.
This is because cheese is a source of protein and has a high fat content, which is especially good for birds in winter, and is popular with wrens, robins and dunnocks.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) says: “A bird's gut is not designed to digest milk, which can cause a serious stomach upset or even death. Birds can, however, digest fermented dairy products such as cheese, which attract robins, wrens and dunnocks.”
It's recommended that gardeners offer mild, grated cheddar or other hard cheese, whereas soft cheeses like brie and blue aren't suitable.
Households should also be mindful not to overfeed birds as an excess of food can attract other wildlife into your garden, such as rats, squirrels and pigeons, which can make it harder for smaller birds to get to the food.
The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust adds: “Site feeders close to trees or bushes, so that birds can dash for cover if required; but not close enough that a cat or predator can pounce on them from the tree.
“Remember not to overfeed as a surplus of food can attract unwanted visitors such as rats. By supplementing the diets of birds you are essentially creating a falsely high population in your garden, therefore if you suddenly stop there could be life-threatening consequences for them.
“If you really want to help then plant the right trees and shrubs in your garden as well as putting out food and birds will have supplies throughout the year.”