Bird Food

The most common reason is that the food is poor quality and/or contains seeds and grains which birds will discard in the search for something better - this often happens with seed mixes which contain fillers such as wheat. However, some species of bird, and notably the Coal tit, have a habit of tossing out perfectly good seeds in the apparent search for one of the perfect size.

Don’t feed wild birds in gardens with bread, cooked fat (e.g. from a joint of meat)or any foods which contain salt.

Assuming there are songbirds in your area, then the most common reason would be poor quality food - e.g. a cheap seed mix. It might also be that the feeder is too close to somewhere that puts the birds off - so perhaps next to a fence with a pavement on the other side which is busy with people passing.

Yes - once birds have found a feeder they will normally return regularly as they remember where it is.

No, as garden birds will only eat the food they need.

Throughout daylight hours. Though garden birds are particularly active first thing in the morning as they search for food to replace the calories lost overnight during rest and sleep. This is especially the case after cold winter nights when birds use energy in order to keep warm.