do backyard bird feeders really help, or are we interfering with the natural feeding process of birds and squirrels etc…
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Just having a backyard is interfering with wildlife. Different plant species fulfill different roles in an ecosystem, and changing what plants are in your yard affects the animals there in many ways great and small. Even if you very carefully cultivated a perfectly native garden, just subdividing the land into yards affects the animals (even the birds).
A backyard feeder will also affect them. Good or bad, help or hurt, depends on perspective and is entirely subjective. There are animal behavior cycles based on food availability, like some bird migration patterns. Keeping food available during scarce times could put them off their schedule. Nutrition requirements can also be a concern. Animals are hard-wired to crave calorie-dense foods, so they may end up over eating if you provide too much of the wrong food.
On the other hand, a feeder could simply replace what was lost when the houses were built, in which case it will only help the animals adapt to the new altered ecosystem. It’s really difficult to say which it is. If you see a lot of fat squirrels, then maybe ease up on the peanuts.
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