Sometimes one of the most calming things any of us can do is disconnect from the busy, bustling human world and get immersed in nature for a while. There are many ways to do this, including grabbing a pair of your favorite hiking boots and hitting the trails, or packing up your camping tent and spending a few nights under the stars. Another great way to get up close and personal with nature? Installing a bird feeder, and bird feeder camera, to let all the winged animals in your neighborhood know they’re welcome.
Bird feeders are great for attracting birds (and sometimes, begrudgingly, squirrels), so you can get a closer look at the exquisite coloring of that finch, the grace of the blue jay or the intense athleticism of the hummingbird. Bird feeder cameras enable you to get an even closer look, and save the footage to rewatch later. If you’re a bird enthusiast, or friends with one, you know how intense a hobby birdwatching can be. Imagine being able to save every bird that happens to land on your feeder, look up the specific species later, and track their habits over time. All of that, and more, is possible with the best bird feeder cameras.
What Are the Best Bird Feeder Cameras?
It’s worth mentioning that this is a fairly new product category, so there aren’t a ton of options at the moment. It’s basically like setting up a high-action camera on your bird feeders so no tweet, poke, flutter or seed munch goes uncaptured.
There are many ways to set up a bird feeder, like using one made specifically for that purpose like the Bird Buddy smart bird feeder, or rigging a GoPro-like action camera to your bird feeder for crisp action shots. We’re going to walk you through all of the best options we’ve identified that are available today, and hopefully inspire you to set up one of your own.
What To Consider Before Buying a Bird Feeder Camera
Camera Resolution
Your top priority, besides a camera that can successfully fit into your space and attach to your feeder, should be image and video resolution. You want to be able to actually see and hear what the camera picks up, so at a minimum you should have the ability to record 16mp of photo quality and 1080p of video quality.
Night Vision
A lot goes on at night, including non-bird critters potentially snacking on your bird feeder goodness. Don’t let that happen! Capture everything, including moments at night when you’re less likely to be awake to catch the action yourself, with a camera that’s got night vision capabilities.
Motion Detection
Lastly, you want a camera that turns on when it’s supposed to. This is one of the reason why we included a few trail cameras, as they’re great at picking up on an animal’s movements and swinging into action when needed.
You’ll also want a camera that’s waterproof and durable against the elements since, unless you’re some type of Ace Ventura character, your bird feeder is probably outside.
1. Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder
BEST NEW PRODUCT
This smart bird feeder from Bird Buddy recently launched off of Kickstarter, and is currently available for pre-order. There aren’t any reviews for this product yet, but if it does what it says it’s going to do it’s bound to make a splash in the wildlife camera space. This camera not only captures stunning pictures and video of bird visitors, it also sends alerts to your phone via an app when one has arrived, identifies the bird species and saves all your media into a collection you can easily share with friends and family.
This smart bird feeder is equipped with AI that can recognize over 1,000 different bird species, has a built-in microphone for capturing each one’s unique sounds and is built right into the feeder, so there’s no rigging necessary. It also comes with a container refill reminder, and optional add-ons like a solar panel, fence and wall mounts, and a suet ball holder too.
Editor’s Note: Bird Buddy’s are currently sold out until June, 2022, but we’re leaving them in here as one of the most promising products in this category.
Buy: Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder Camera $189.00
2. Vikeri 1080p Trail Camera
BEST TRAIL CAMERA
This trail camera comes with all the desired specs you want from a bird feeder camera, and doesn’t have an exorbitant price tag that’ll break the bank. It comes with a mounting strap that’s perfect for attaching it to a tree or fence, so angling it towards your bird feeder shouldn’t be too difficult. It’s got 1080p video capture and 16mp photo capture as well. It’s IP66 waterproof and built for enduring heavy-duty weather. It also has a 0.2 second trigger speed, so any movement will almost instantly be captured, especially important when you’re filming birds. It’s got a 120° wide angle lens and no glow infrared LEDs for capturing clear footage at night.
Buy: Vikeri Trail Camera $67.99
3. Kasa Smart 1080p Outdoor Camera
BEST OUTDOOR CAMERA
This outdoor camera from Kasa is great for installing for home security purposes, but also makes for a great bird feeder camera if you angle it correctly and zoom in. It’s got 1080p HD capturing, two-way audio (in case you want to speak with any of your winged visitors) and is super easy to install. You can easily zoom in to capture more of the action, and you get alerts sent to your phone whenever the camera detects movement. It automatically saves your video history to the cloud and keeps it for 12 hours, so you’ll need to be proactive about going into the app and saving footage you want.
Buy: Kasa Smart Outdoor Camera $259.98
4. Birdhouse Hawk Eye HD Spy Cam
BEST BIRDHOUSE CAMERA
Technically, this camera is meant to be used in a covered environment like a bird house, but it could definitely double as a bird feeder camera so long as you protect it from the elements. It’s essentially a miniature high-definition camera with a built-in microphone, built for capturing birds in their semi-natural habitat. It’s got night vision from 10 infrared LEDs and comes with two 50′ detachable AV power cables you can easily snake up a tree or across the yard. It’s designed for plug n’ play action with a TV or AV-compatible computer, so you can live stream directly from your bird feeder. It’s less a camera for capturing images and more for enjoying live video from the comfort of the couch, live bird feed(er) video, that is.
Buy: Birdhouse Spy Cam HD Camera $101.25
5. Wosports 16mp HD Mini Trail Camera
BEST MINI TRAIL CAMERA
A big honking trail camera might scare off some species of birds, so a miniature one might be the way to go. This one is smaller in size, but equal in its capabilities as it can capture 1080p video and 16mp photos. It captures footage in crisp color during the day and black and white at night, and it’s built for low power consumption so you don’t need to change the batteries as often.
Buy: Wosports Mini Trail Camera $39.99
6. EKEN H9R 4K Action Camera
BEST ACTION CAMERA
This action camera from EKEN is like a cheaper GoPro, so you don’t have to place your $300 investment outside for the birds. It’s got built-in WiFi capabilities for sharing the footage to your smartphone, and an HDMI output for uploading footage. It comes in waterproof housing and a 2″ high-quality display for immediate playback. It can be mounted on a tripod or right in front of the feeder.
An action camera like this one is great for short bursts of high-quality footage that you can upload and share. Because it runs on a battery, it’s not as equipped to be a long-term capturing solution like the trail cameras are. Depending on what your footage goals and interests are, though, it could be a great option.
Buy: EKEN H9R 4K Action Camera $75.99