Wild Bird Feeding Laws in Maryland: What’s Actually Legal in Your Backyard

If you have ever wondered whether that finch feeder hanging from your porch could get you in legal trouble, you are not alone. Feeding wild birds laws in Maryland are more nuanced than a simple yes-or-no answer, especially once waterfowl, bears, and homeowners associations enter the picture.

Backyard bird feeding is one of the most common wildlife hobbies in the state, but Maryland treats different birds, locations, and feeding methods very differently under the law. Here is what actually applies to you, section by section, before you fill that feeder again.

Activity	Legal Status in Maryland	Governing Authority
Feeding songbirds in your backyard	Generally legal	Maryland DNR Wild Acres guidance
Feeding waterfowl at scale or on certain areas	May require a license	Natural Resources Article, Title 10, Subtitle 10
Maintaining feeders in active bear habitat	Strongly discouraged seasonally	Maryland DNR bear advisories
Feeding birds in county or state parks	Often prohibited	Local park authorities
Using feed to attract migratory birds for hunting	Restricted (baiting rules)	Maryland migratory game bird regulations

Is It Legal to Feed Wild Birds in Maryland

Yes, in most circumstances. Feeding wildlife is not illegal in Maryland, unless you are baiting certain game species while hunting. Putting out bird feeders rarely causes wildlife conflicts, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Wild Acres program.

That said, Maryland’s wild bird protections work in a specific direction. Under the Natural Resources Article, a person may not hunt, destroy, or possess in any manner any wild bird within the State whether killed in the State or in any other state, territory, or country, except for unprotected birds and game birds hunted during open season. This statute is designed to stop people from harming or capturing wild birds, not to restrict backyard feeding, so setting out seed, suet, or nectar for songbirds falls outside its scope.

If you are drawn to nectar feeders, you might wonder which species you are actually attracting. Maryland hosts several hummingbird species that rely on feeders during migration season, along with a handful of green-colored backyard birds that visit suet and seed stations year-round. Even researchers based in the state feed birds at home. A U.S. Geological Survey wildlife biologist stationed at Patuxent Research Refuge in Maryland is a wildlife biologist for the U.S. Geological Survey, based at Patuxent Research Refuge in Maryland, and feeds birds, but not the way most people do, favoring native plantings over commercial seed. The takeaway: the hobby itself is legal statewide, but how and where you do it introduces the exceptions covered below.

Pro Tip: Keep records of when you clean and refill feeders. If a neighbor or code officer ever raises a nuisance complaint, documentation of routine maintenance supports your case that the setup is not attracting pests or disease.

Bird Feeder Placement and Height Rules in Maryland

Maryland does not have a single statewide statute dictating exact feeder height or setback distances the way some municipalities elsewhere do. Instead, the state relies on practical guidance and leaves specific placement rules to local jurisdictions. Mammals such as bears, deer, raccoons and squirrels may frequent your feeder and cause problems, which is why DNR’s own advice focuses on placement strategy rather than a fixed number.

One option is to place your feeder up high or place large-mesh fencing around it to allow birds in but keep deer out. Spraying deer repellent around your feeder and yard can also provide temporary relief, though repellents containing pepper should be avoided since they can harm birds. These are DNR-recommended techniques rather than legal mandates, but ignoring them can create the nuisance conditions that trigger local code enforcement.

Cleanliness matters as much as height. Raccoons are responsible for most human-wildlife conflicts in Maryland and, in 2010, accounted for over 60 percent of the state’s rabies cases, a figure that illustrates why unattended feeders can escalate quickly from a bird-watching hobby into a genuine wildlife hazard. If you notice unwanted visitors, the state’s own guidance is direct: stop feeding immediately and let conditions reset before resuming. Predation is another placement factor worth weighing, since low feeders near shrubs can put birds within easy reach of roaming pets. Reviewing Maryland’s outdoor cat laws can help you understand your options if a neighbor’s cat is regularly hunting near your feeding station.

Important Note: Because Maryland leaves feeder placement largely to local discretion, always check your specific county or municipal code before assuming state guidance is the final word.

Feeding Waterfowl: Ducks, Geese, and Special Restrictions in Maryland

Waterfowl feeding is where Maryland law gets genuinely specific, and it is the section most backyard birders overlook. The Natural Resources Article contains an entire subtitle dedicated to this issue. Under the Wild Waterfowl Policy subtitle, the state establishes a formal legislative policy and license to feed waterfowl, complete with an application and fee process, defined grounds for denial or cancellation, and rules for regulating feeding and hunting near feeding zones. Feeding waterfowl outside that licensed framework is addressed separately under the subtitle’s provision on feeding without a license.

Separate regulations govern captive-raised mallards released for shooting preserves. If a permittee feeds free-flying mallard ducks released on a regulated shooting area, all feeding must be done by a feeder located on dry land, and feeding captive-raised mallard ducks in tidal waters, or within 25 feet of the mean high water line of tidal waters bordering the regulated shooting area, is prohibited, per COMAR 08.03.13.06. These rules apply to licensed shooting preserves, not typical backyard duck feeding, but they show how tightly Maryland regulates waterfowl feeding compared to songbird feeding.

If you hunt, the baiting rules matter even more. Migratory game birds may not be hunted over any area where seed has been top sown or broadcast on top of the soil leaving the seed available to feeding birds. An area is considered by law to be baited for 10 days after removal of the bait, and federal guidance confirms a baited area remains off limits to hunting for 10 days after all salt, grain, or other feed has been completely removed. If you split time between feeding birds recreationally and hunting waterfowl, review Maryland’s duck hunting laws and broader hunting laws in Maryland before setting out any feed near a hunting area, since the same seed you use to feed backyard birds could inadvertently create a baited hunting violation next door.

Bear-Attractant Laws That Affect Bird Feeders in Maryland

In western Maryland and other areas with an active black bear population, bird feeders stop being a neutral backyard fixture and start being a documented attractant risk. Maryland DNR strongly encourages residents who live in and near bear habitats to remove backyard bird feeders from April through November, since birds have plenty of wild food sources during this time. This guidance comes directly from the Maryland DNR’s 2026 bear advisory.

The concern is behavioral, not just seasonal annoyance. Once a black bear finds an easy meal, like a bird feeder or trash, they are likely to be repeat visitors. Young bears compound the problem: young bears striking out alone can travel 150 to 200 miles as they search for a territory of their own, meaning a single unsecured feeder can influence bear behavior far beyond your own property line.

Maryland is not unique in treating feeders this way. In communities near bear habitat, the law often goes further than banning intentional feeding, with many municipalities requiring residents to store trash in bear-resistant containers, bring in bird feeders during months when bears are active, and secure pet food indoors. These attractant ordinances treat unsecured garbage or an accessible bird feeder the same way they treat deliberately putting out food, so you don’t have to intend to feed a bear to violate one of these laws, a distinction worth understanding if you live in Garrett, Allegany, Washington, or Frederick County. For details on the full picture, see this breakdown of attractant ordinances.

Pro Tip: If you live in bear country and want to keep feeding birds through the warmer months, switch to smaller feeders you can bring inside nightly, and store the seed itself in a hard-sided container rather than in a garage bin.

HOA and Municipal Bird Feeding Restrictions in Maryland

State law rarely touches this issue directly, which pushes the real decision-making down to your community’s governing documents. State and local laws usually don’t address an HOA’s authority to ban bird feeders, so the answer to “can my HOA stop me” almost always comes down to your association’s paperwork rather than Annapolis.

Whether an HOA can ban bird feeders depends on state or local laws and the association’s governing documents, and more often than not, state and local laws are silent on the issue. An HOA will likely need to verify its authority by checking the governing documents, particularly the CC&Rs and operating rules, and if those documents say bird feeders are not allowed, the board can enforce that rule. Practically, that means two identical bird feeders in two different Maryland subdivisions could have entirely different legal standing depending on what each community’s bylaws say. Read the full explanation at Cedar Management Group’s HOA bird feeder guide before assuming your feeder is protected.

This same governing-document logic shows up across other backyard hobbies regulated at the HOA level in Maryland. If your community also restricts small livestock or poultry, it is worth comparing notes with Maryland’s backyard chicken laws, since many associations bundle bird feeders, coops, and other yard fixtures into the same aesthetic or nuisance provisions.

Feeding Birds on Public Land or Parks in Maryland

Your own backyard and a public park are two different legal environments, even within the same county. Montgomery Parks prohibits the feeding of wildlife in its parks, a policy confirmed on the county’s own information page, and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources does not recommend feeding deer and other wildlife due to potential harm to wildlife and public safety concerns.

Montgomery County is not an outlier; most Maryland park systems treat wildlife feeding as a nuisance-control issue rather than a wildlife-welfare one, since fed animals in high-traffic public spaces tend to lose their natural wariness and become dependent on visitors. If you are unsure whether a specific state or county park allows bird feeding, Montgomery County’s MC311 guidance page is a useful model for the kind of rule you should expect to find, and it is worth a call to the specific park authority before setting out feed on a picnic table or trailhead.

Penalties for Violating Wildlife Feeding Laws in Maryland

Penalties in Maryland scale with what you are actually doing, not just the act of feeding itself. General backyard bird feeding carries no penalty because it is not restricted in the first place. The exposure comes from the specific categories covered above.

• Feeding waterfowl without a license when the activity falls under the licensed feeding framework is treated as a distinct violation under the Wild Waterfowl Policy subtitle’s provision on feeding without a license, separate from ordinary backyard feeding.
• Baiting migratory birds for hunting creates dual exposure, since a violation of a State waterfowl hunting regulation is also a violation of federal law, as a violation of a State waterfowl hunting regulation is also a violation of Federal law.
• Possessing or destroying protected wild birds outside the narrow exceptions in the statute remains restricted under the Natural Resources Article’s protection against hunting, destroying, or possessing any wild bird within the State except for unprotected birds and game birds hunted during open season.
• Local attractant ordinance violations in bear country can apply even without intent to feed a bear, since you don’t have to intend to feed a bear to violate one of these laws if your feeder creates the same conditions.

Because fines and enforcement mechanisms for local ordinances vary by county and municipality, your best move if you receive a warning or citation is to contact the issuing agency directly. For statewide wildlife feeding questions, Maryland DNR’s Wildlife and Heritage Service is the right first call before assuming a violation applies to your situation.

Important Note: This article summarizes publicly available Maryland statutes, regulations, and agency guidance for general informational purposes. It is not legal advice. For a specific enforcement question or citation, consult your county code office or a licensed Maryland attorney.

Feeding wild birds laws in Maryland ultimately favor the backyard hobbyist. Ordinary songbird feeding is legal, unregulated, and even encouraged by state wildlife agencies, as long as you stay mindful of the narrower rules governing waterfowl, bear country, HOA documents, and public parks. Check your specific county and community rules before assuming state-level permissiveness covers every situation, and adjust your setup seasonally if you live anywhere near active bear habitat.