Key Takeaways
- Metal beats plastic when bears are around: The WLNYUGS 4-port feeder is chew-proof metal with a gravity spring closure, and it sits at #65 in its category.
- Hummingbird nectar is bear bait too: The FEED GARDEN glass feeder is the #1 bestseller in its category and the glass body rinses clean fast, which matters if you’re bringing it in nightly.
- Deepest cut of the week: The onlyfly solar camera feeder is 64% off, the only discount in this whole garden pool above 50%.
- Window feeders are the low-risk option: The DY-SKTY acrylic feeder holds a small amount of seed and pulls off the glass in two seconds.
If you’ve lived here more than a season, you already know what September does to a black bear. They’re eating around the clock right now, packing on fat before denning, and a tube of sunflower seed is the easiest 1,500 calories in the county. I’ve had neighbors in three different counties send me the same photo this month: a bent shepherd’s hook, a cracked plastic tube, and a very relaxed bear.
So when this week’s garden pool came through for WV Finds, the bird feeder category jumped out. Almost every discounted feeder on the list was metal and marketed as squirrel proof, which is not a coincidence. Squirrel-proof and bear-resistant are not the same thing, but a welded metal body with a spring closure survives a curious bear a lot better than plastic does, and it can be brought inside and refilled without falling apart.
Prices verified September 15, 2026. I split these into the metal seed feeders, the hummingbird feeders that people forget are pure sugar water, and the window-mounted ones that hold so little seed a bear never learns your yard is worth the walk.
How do you keep bears out of bird feeders?
The short answer is that you take the food away, because nothing you hang outside is truly bear proof. The DNR’s long-standing guidance is to pull feeders during the months bears are active, and if you’re going to feed anyway, bring everything in at dusk and hang it high on a wire strung between two trees rather than on a pole you can reach from the ground.
The feeder itself still matters. A metal body with a chew-resistant port doesn’t tempt a bear any less, but it comes through the encounter intact and it stops the squirrels that spill seed all over the ground in the first place. Ground spill is what brings bears in close more often than the feeder does.
WLNYUGS 4-Port Metal Bird Feeder
This is the one I’d point a neighbor to first. Four feeding ports, a gravity spring closure that shuts under weight, and an upgraded metal hanging ring that won’t unbend the first time something heavy pulls on it. It sits at #65 in its category, which for a metal feeder in this price band is strong.
- Gravity spring closure
- Chew-proof metal body
- Upgraded metal hanging ring
KRUOO Metal Squirrel Proof Feeder
A 2.5 lb capacity keeps you honest, and that’s a feature here rather than a limit. Less seed in the tube means less to clean up if something knocks it down, and it’s a quicker job to pull the feeder in at night. The listing sells easy refill and cleaning, and the #22 rank says a lot of people agree.
- 2.5 lb seed capacity
- All-metal construction
- Easy refill and clean
Dreamdrawer Squirrel-Proof Feeder
Ranked #12 in its category, which puts it near the top of a crowded field. The description is thinner than I’d like on capacity numbers, so check the dimensions before you commit if you’re replacing a specific feeder. At 20% off it’s a moderate discount rather than a steal.
- Squirrel-resistant design
- Outdoor hanging feeder
- #12 category bestseller
WeeFeetc Metal Bird Feeder
Four pounds of seed is a lot for one hanging, and I’d only run it that full in winter once the bears have denned. The waterproof build is the part worth paying for in a place where a November rain can turn a full tube into a moldy brick. Easy fill and clean, per the listing.
- 4 lb large capacity
- Waterproof metal build
- Easy to clean and fill
LCSEVEN Metal Bird Feeder
A 3.6 lb metal feeder in green, aimed at finches and cardinals along with the bigger jays. It’s the cheapest of the metal seed feeders here and the discount is the same one-third off you’ll see on most of this group. Solid middle-of-the-road buy if you want metal without spending forty dollars.
- 3.6 lb seed capacity
- Squirrel proof metal body
- Green finish
Do hummingbird feeders attract bears?
Yes, and people underestimate this one badly. Sugar water is a concentrated calorie source and a bear will flatten a hummingbird feeder without hesitation, which is why nectar feeders need to come in every single night during September.
The good news is the timing is nearly over. Most of our ruby-throats clear out by late September, and if you’re not sure whether to keep filling, the hummingbird migration timing for West Virginia is worth a read before you put the feeders away.
FEED GARDEN Glass Hummingbird Feeder
The #1 bestseller in its category, and the glass body is the reason. Glass rinses clean without holding the cloudy film plastic picks up, and this one has bee guards plus a built-in ant moat so you’re not fighting insects on top of everything else. Sixteen ounces with a 360 degree perch ring and four metal ports.
- 16 oz leak-proof glass
- Bee guards and ant moat
- 360 degree perch ring
Kingsyard Saucer Hummingbird Feeders
Saucer-style feeders are the practical pick if you’re hauling feeders in and out daily, because the nectar sits below the ports and doesn’t drip when you carry them. Two 16 oz feeders in the pack at #5 in the category. Kingsyard is a marketplace brand, but the sales rank and the Prime shipping check out.
- 2-pack, 16 oz each
- Saucer style, drip resistant
- Hanging outdoor design
Zamelane Hummingbird Feeders 2-Pack
Two plastic 15 oz feeders with five ports each and a built-in ant moat, sitting at #2 in the category. Plastic is easier to drop and not cry about, which is worth something when the feeder lives on your porch rail half the day. Smallest discount of the hummingbird group at 27% off.
- 15 oz capacity each
- 5 feeding ports with perches
- Built-in ant moat
Are window feeders a safer choice near bears?
They’re the lowest-risk feeder you can run in bear country, mostly because of volume. A suction-cup tray holds a handful of seed instead of several pounds, so there’s rarely enough reward there to teach a bear that your house is a food source.
Placement still matters. Mount it on a second-story window or a window over a deck rather than a ground-floor slider, and take the tray in at night the same as anything else. A clear feeder also makes the cleaning obvious, which is the part most people skip until the seed goes sour.
DY-SKTY Clear Window Feeder
Five suction cups instead of the usual two or three, which is the specification I look at first on these. Cheap window feeders fail by sliding down the glass after a cold night, and more cups spread the load. Ranked #15 in its category and made of acrylic, so expect to replace it eventually rather than hand it down.
- 5 extra strong suction cups
- Clear acrylic body
- Close-up window viewing
SVEDVK Window Bird Feeder
This one has a dual seed tray plus a separate water bowl, which is the useful difference in the group. Water gets scarce in a dry September and a small bowl at eye level brings in birds that ignore seed entirely. It’s the cheapest feeder in the entire post at 40% off.
- Dual seed tray
- Separate water bowl
- Strong suction cup mount
Lilyang Window Bird Feeder
A straightforward suction-cup feeder at #105 in the category with no gimmicks attached. It’s fine. If the SVEDVK is out of stock or you want something a little sturdier at the mount, this is the reasonable alternative, though you’re paying more for a simpler tray.
- Strong suction cups
- Clear viewing panel
- Simple tray design
Is a camera feeder worth it if bears visit?
A camera feeder earns its keep in bear country for one reason people don’t expect: it tells you what’s coming into the yard at three in the morning. If you’re getting overnight visitors you’ll know within a week and can pull the feeders before a bear gets comfortable.
onlyfly Solar Smart Bird Feeder
Solar powered with a 2K live stream, and at 64% off it’s the deepest garden discount I tracked this week by a wide margin. The camera models in this pool ran from the mid-forties up past $179, and this is the only one under fifty dollars. Read the subscription terms before you buy, because pricing on these cameras often assumes a cloud plan.
- 2K live video stream
- Solar powered
- Backyard camera feeder
Frequently asked questions
When should I take bird feeders down in West Virginia?
The common guidance is to keep feeders down through the months bears are active, roughly spring until they den in late fall or early winter. If you feed during that window anyway, bring everything inside at dusk and clean up spilled seed under the feeder. Most bear complaints around homes here trace back to food left out overnight.
Is any bird feeder truly bear proof?
No. A metal chew-resistant feeder survives a bear encounter far better than plastic, but a determined bear will still get the seed. The feeder build protects your investment. Removing the food is what protects the bear.
How high should I hang a feeder to keep bears off it?
The standard recommendation is at least 10 feet off the ground and 4 feet out from any post, trunk, or railing a bear can climb. A cable strung between two trees works better than a shepherd’s hook, which a bear can simply bend over. Even then, hang it where you can reach it to bring it in at night.
Do hummingbird feeders need to come in too?
Yes. Sugar water is a strong attractant and bears will pull nectar feeders down. Take them in every evening through September, and once your hummingbirds have migrated south you can put them away for the season.
Discounts across this garden pool ran from 17% up to 64%, with most of the metal feeders clustered between 25% and 34%. That’s a normal, honest band for this category and the original prices looked real rather than inflated, which is not always the case with feeders. The only outlier was the onlyfly camera feeder at 64% off, and camera hardware discounts that steep usually mean a model refresh is coming.
Honest read: this was a decent week, not a great one. The WLNYUGS 4-port metal feeder is the pick I’d stand behind, because the gravity spring and the reinforced hanging ring address the two ways these feeders fail. The FEED GARDEN glass hummingbird feeder is the other one worth the money, though with migration nearly done you’re buying for next May. I’d skip the mid-rank window feeders unless you specifically want the water bowl on the SVEDVK.
Watch the metal feeder category through October. Once the bears den up, demand for seed feeders climbs and these discounts tend to shrink, so the last two weeks of September are the better window. If you’re already out in the yard this month putting things to bed, the fall garden planting dates and the tools that handle our rocky clay pair up with this work, and the rest of the week’s garden markdowns are over in the full deals list. Get the feeders in before dark tonight and you’ll save yourself a bent pole.
