The bird may then develop protein deficiencies as well as vitamin and mineral imbalances. Sunflower seeds are the fast food of the bird world, they really shouldn't make up any major portion of their diet and should only be offered as a treat to your bird – not a mainstay in their diet.
What do they eat? While the savvy birds, who mostly feed on live foods such as invertebrates or nuts, seeds or creepy crawlies like earthworms and spiders, will often approach humans for food, Maguire says it is imperative that people refrain from feeding magpies unless they have a permit.
Raw meat, cheese and bread off the menu
Brisbane bird and exotic animal vet Deborah Monks said raw meat and mince, although popular, did the most damage to magpie health. "I wouldn't recommend raw mince on its own because it doesn't have enough calcium in it," she said.
Some seed mixes contain large quantities of sunflower seeds, which may attract larger seed-eating (granivorous) birds (particularly parrots), but these seeds are high in fat. Black sunflower seeds should be avoided altogether; a small quantity of grey-striped sunflower seeds is fine.
For the Australian sunflower growers this represents an opportunity to supply seed to seed mixes and seed blocks suited particularly to birds such as parrots, cockatiels, parakeets, peach faces and other similar seed-eating caged and wild birds.
Most birds can eat sunflower seeds without any ill effects. Birds are not too picky when it comes to food and will eat almost anything you leave out them. Sunflower seeds are a safe and healthy food to leave out for the birds in your garden to eat.
What do they eat? Magpies feed on small insects and animals that live on, or just under, the surface of the ground. A favourite is the scarab beetle, which is a major pest of garden lawns.
In general, yes. Raw porridge oats are safe for species of birds. In most situations, uncooked porridge oats are a delicious treat that many birds enjoy. After all, the oats you purchase in the grocery store or from a wild bird store are not that different from the oats that birds encounter in the wild.
Magpies are 'like dogs'
"They will form very long friendships, like dogs," she said. "They will introduce their young [to you] and they will be the most charming birds. "Even during the breeding season you can come close to them because they know you'll do no harm."
Bread does not contain the necessary protein and fat birds need from their diet, and so it can act as an empty filler. Although bread isn't harmful to birds, try not to offer it in large quantities, since its nutritional value is relatively low.
Pumpkin seeds are highly nutritious for birds, particularly in fall when the birds need more energy to fuel migration, molt into winter plumage, and store fat to resist the cold. Pumpkin seeds are high in calories, carbohydrates, and healthy fats, as well as being a good source of protein.
Small pieces of cheese and broken up Savoy biscuits...also he loves hard boiled eggs just the yoke....but he only gets a 1/4 of the yoke at a time twice a week.
Compared to striped sunflower seeds, black oil seeds are meatier and have a higher oil content, giving birds more nutrition and calories in every bite. Black oil seeds also have thinner shells, making them easier for small birds to crack.
"They suffer from high cholesterol if fed too much processed stuff," says Associate Professor Darryl Jones, deputy director of Environmental Futures Centre at Griffith University. "If you have to feed them, the best things are dry and wet cat and dog food."
Although peanuts are a simple way of giving your garden birds an all-round nutritious treat there are some precautions you should take: Do not feed birds salted, flavoured, or dry roasted nuts. Birds are unable to process high quantities of salt and they may become very sick or even die.
Magpies eat eggs and young ones of other birds during their breeding seasons. However, they also eat arthropods and cereal seeds whenever they can't get eggs.
Any dry breakfast cereal makes for useful bird food, although you need to be careful only to put out small amounts at a time. And make sure there's a supply of drinking water nearby, since it quickly turns into pulp once wet. Uncooked porridge oats are also fine for a number of birds.
Eggs and eggshells
It might seem strange to feed them eggs, but cooked eggs are a highly nutritious and wholesome meal for many wild birds.
The diet of a magpie
Their main diet in summer is grassland invertebrates, such as beetles, flies, caterpillars, spiders, worms and leatherjackets. In winter, they eat more plant material, such as wild fruits, berries and grains, with household scraps and food scavenged from bird tables or chicken runs, pet foods etc.
In the wild, magpies roost in dense thickets where visibility is reduced and darkness deep.
Steer Clear: Foods to Avoid Feeding Magpies
Another food to be cautious about is plain mince, which contains high levels of phosphate that can result in calcium loss from magpies' beaks and bones.
Excess consumption of sunflower seeds may cause vomiting, stomach ache and constipation. People allergic to sunflower seeds may show symptoms like vomiting, rashes, breathing problem, swelling and itching around the mouth etc. Sunflower seeds are rich in calories. Consuming too much may lead to weight gain.
Sunflower seeds are high in fiber and also in fat, and calories. Their high fiber and fat content mean that eating too many of them in one sitting can lead to stomach cramps, nausea, and diarrhea.
Popular Pet Bird Food Myth No. 1: Sunflower seeds are addictive. There is nothing in sunflower seeds that would cause true addiction. Parrots simply enjoy sunflower seeds, and many would eat them to the exclusion of everything else if permitted.