Dani-G

=Does Seed Matter?=

Introduction:
At first I wanted to do a project about the difference between brands but than when I talked to a bird expert she told me that "Different brands make their mixes differently." so I wouldn't be able to get different brands but all the same mix. So I decided to get all the same brand but different mixes and see what mixes the birds prefer. It was hard for me to decide wether to change the project or not but when I got down to it I thought that if I tried to do the brand question than it would be 2 separate questions trying to be answered with one answer. Because I couldn't get different brands same mix I would be testing both the brand and the mix and I didn't think that would be accurate enough information.

Question:
If I put 4 different bird feed mixes outside in bird feeders which mix will the birds prefer (if any).

Hypothesis:
I think that the birds will prefer the mix called __Nut and Berry__ above the others because if i were to eat any of the mixes i would eat this one, and i also think the birds would prefer this because it is more colorful. The ingredients in __Nut and Berry__ are: Black oil sunflower seeds, sunflower hearts, peanut kernels, safflower seeds, papaya, raisins, and juniper berries. this is the mix that i think the birds will prefer.

Procedure:
Step 1: Build 4 bird feeders that are the same. Step 2: Buy 4 different mixes of bird feed that are all the same brand. Step 3: Fill bird feeders with the bird feed. Step 4: Weigh the bird feeders with feed in them at the same time every morning. Step 5: Hang the bird feeders up on a tree. Step 6: At the end of the day at the same time every day weigh the bird feeders and see how many oz. have been eating. than record data on chart. Step 7: Repeat steps 3-7.

Materials:

 * 4 Identical bird feeders
 * 4 Different mixes of bird seed
 * 1 Scale

Birds that would eat the feed:
House Wren, Tufted Titmouse, Black-capped Chickadee, Dark-eyed Junco, Northern Cardinal, House Sparrow.

Day 1, Beginning of Day 2:
.05 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   ||
 * Type of mix || Day 1 oz. eaten || Day 2 oz. eaten || Day 3 oz. eaten || Day 4 oz. eaten || Day 5 oz. eaten || Total oz. eaten ||
 * Feeder wise || .02 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   ||
 * Nut and Berry || .03 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   ||
 * Patio wise || Gained
 * Bird wise || .04 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   ||


 * Type of mix || Day 1 Weight in the morning || Day 2 Weight in the morning || Day 3 Weight in the morning || Day 4 Weight in the morning || Day 5 Weight in the morning ||
 * Feeder wise || 5.77 oz. || 6.18 oz ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Nut and Berry || 5.84 oz. || 5.91 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Patio wise || 6.59 oz. || 8.02 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Bird wise || 6.14 oz. || 6.29 oz. ||  ||   ||   ||

Final chart:
.05 oz. || .07 oz. || .02 oz. || .55 oz || Gained .08 oz. || .51 oz. ||
 * Type of mix || Day 1 oz. eaten || Day 2 oz. eaten || Day 3 oz. eaten || Day 4 oz. eaten || Day 5 oz. eaten || Total oz. eaten ||
 * Feeder wise || .02 oz. || Gained .02 oz. || .06 oz. || Gained .07 oz || .09 oz. || .08 oz. ||
 * Nut and Berry || .03 oz. || .02 oz. || .05 oz. || .71 oz. || .02 oz. || .83 oz. ||
 * Patio wise || Gained
 * Bird wise || .04 oz. || Gained .14 oz. || .12 oz. || 0 oz. || .01 oz || .03 oz. ||


 * Type of mix || Day 1 Weight in the morning || Day 2 Weight in the morning || Day 3 Weight in the morning || Day 4 Weight in the morning || Day 5 Weight in the morning ||
 * Feeder wise || 5.77 oz. || 6.18 oz || 6.14 oz. || 6.08 oz. || 6.15 ||
 * Nut and Berry || 5.84 oz. || 5.91 oz. || 5.83 oz. || 5.78 oz. || 5.07 ||
 * Patio wise || 6.59 oz. || 8.02 oz. || 7.93 oz. || 7.91 oz. || 7.36 ||
 * Bird wise || 6.14 oz. || 6.29 oz. || 6.37 oz. || 6.25 oz. || 6.25 ||

**Additional comments:**

 * Originally when i saw that some days it gained i actually thought that the birds might have used the feeders as a bathroom or something, but than i realized that it had rained earlier that day and it was probably that some rain was absorbed so that it gained weight. Another factor that came into play was actually that i was moving the week that i did this experiment and because i wanted to start and end the experiment at that house i was not able to leave the bird feeders out for the same amount of time every day.**

**Conclusion:**

 * I think that because of the area that the feeders were in was crowded with trees it may have been hard for the birds to find the feeders so i think i would have found that if i had put the bird feeders out for longer than the birds would have eaten more feed. Aside from the fact that it may have been hard to find the feeders (for the birds) the feed that was most eaten was Nut and Berry, but the birds barely ate any feed at all from any feeders.**