What eats milo? Which birds eat milo (sorghum)
Milo, also sold as sorghum, is mainly a ground-feeder food: doves, quail, pheasants, turkeys and towhees eat it, while most eastern feeder birds leave it. That makes it filler in the East and genuinely useful in the Southwest.
Filler in the East, useful in the Southwest. Round red seed.
Which birds does milo (sorghum) attract?
| Bird | Where it feeds | Best feeder |
|---|---|---|
| Mourning Doves | Ground or tray | Platform or tray feeder |
| Quail | Ground or tray | Ground tray |
How do you feed milo (sorghum)?
| Feeder | Ground tray |
|---|---|
| Squirrels | Low interest |
| Mess | Eastern birds kick it out of mixes |
| Storage | Keeps well |
Feeders that suit milo (sorghum)
Budget ranges are a guide; the button shows the current price on Amazon.
What eats milo?
Milo is the round reddish seed of grain sorghum, and the birds that eat it are the ones that feed on the ground. In Project FeederWatch's food guidance from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, milo is listed as a food that western ground-feeding birds take and that eastern feeder birds mostly reject.
| Eats milo readily | Usually ignores it |
|---|---|
| Mourning doves, white-winged doves | Cardinals, grosbeaks |
| Quail (bobwhite, Gambel's, California) | Chickadees, titmice, nuthatches |
| Wild turkeys, pheasants | Goldfinches, house finches, siskins |
| Towhees, curve-billed thrashers, Steller's jays in the West | Woodpeckers (they want suet and peanuts) |
| Chickens, ducks, geese and livestock | Most eastern sparrows, which prefer white millet |
Squirrels, raccoons and deer show little interest in milo compared with corn or sunflower, which is one reason it keeps appearing in cheap mixes: it is a low-cost grain that few mammals steal.
Is milo good for birds?
Milo is safe for birds and is a reasonable energy grain, but it is not a good general feeder seed. It is lower in fat than black oil sunflower and most songbirds will not open or swallow it, so a mix heavy in milo costs you money for seed that is flicked onto the ground, where it draws rodents and moulds when wet. It earns its place only in a ground tray or platform feeder in the West and Southwest, or anywhere doves, quail and turkeys are the birds you want. For everything else, white proso millet feeds the same ground birds and is also taken by juncos and sparrows, so it is the better filler.
Sources
- Food preferences by species: the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Project FeederWatch food and feeder guidance, which lists milo as taken by western ground-feeding birds and generally rejected by eastern feeder birds.
- Milo as poultry feed: the sorghum-as-feed-grain summaries published by the United Sorghum Checkoff Program and USDA feed grain data.
Other seed and food types
Black oil sunflower · Striped sunflower · Sunflower hearts and chips · Safflower · Nyjer (thistle) · White proso millet · Cracked corn · Shelled peanuts · Peanuts in the shell · Suet and suet dough · Mealworms · Fruit (oranges, apples, berries) · Grape jelly · Nectar (sugar water) · Mixed seed blends
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After the checklist, a few short emails, then a couple a month at most. Unsubscribe anytime.Frequently asked questions
What eats milo in a bird seed mix?
Mourning doves, quail, pheasants, wild turkeys, towhees and western ground birds eat milo. Cardinals, chickadees, finches, nuthatches and most other eastern feeder birds leave it on the ground, so in the East it is the main filler in cheap mixes.
Can chickens eat milo?
Yes. Milo (grain sorghum) is a standard poultry feed grain, used in commercial layer and broiler rations in sorghum-growing states as a substitute for corn. Backyard chickens eat it whole or cracked as a scratch grain. It has slightly less energy than corn, so it should supplement a balanced layer feed rather than replace it.
Is milo good for birds?
It is safe but low value for most backyard birds. Ground feeders such as doves, quail and turkeys eat it readily; most songbirds reject it. White proso millet is the better low-cost filler because juncos, sparrows and towhees take it as well as the doves and quail.
What birds eat milo (sorghum)?
mourning doves and quail are the main takers. The red seed that fills cheap mixes. Western ground birds eat it; most eastern feeder birds do not, so it ends up on the ground. Offering it in a ground tray gives the birds that want it easy access without spilling it for the ones that do not.
Do squirrels eat milo (sorghum)?
Low interest. That makes it a useful choice in yards where squirrels are a constant problem, although a baffled pole is still the only complete fix.
How should I store milo (sorghum)?
Keeps well. Keep any seed in a sealed metal can in a cool, dry place so mice, insects and moisture cannot reach it. Throw out anything that smells musty, clumps or shows mould, since mouldy food can make birds sick.
What feeder is best for milo (sorghum)?
ground tray. A low mesh tray a few inches off the ground keeps seed out of wet soil. Matching the feeder to the food matters: the wrong ports either jam or pour the food out onto the ground.
Is milo (sorghum) messy?
Eastern birds kick it out of mixes. Round red seed. If mess under the feeder is a concern, hulled foods such as sunflower hearts leave nothing behind, and a seed tray under the feeder catches most of what is dropped.
