Caring for the National Aviary's large variety of birds with diverse and changing needs can be very costly. We only use restaurant-quality products (and the best rodents money can buy). See how much food it takes each week to “eat like a bird” at the National Aviary:

4 cases of papayas

1 case of pomegranates

125 lbs. of smelts

20 lbs mixed dried beans and legumes

30 lbs. of parrot pellets

25 lbs. of apples

40 lbs. of capelin

10 lbs. of crane pellets

30 lbs. of bananas

16 mackerels

50 lbs. of softbill pellets

28 lbs. of grapes

50 day old chicks

10 lbs. of waterfowl pellets

22 adult chickens

10 lbs. of small bird pellets

25 lbs. of oranges

27 adult quails

35 lbs. of low iron softbill pellets

7 lbs. of zucchini

10 lbs. of cooked pasta

30 lbs. of flamingo fare

30 lbs. of frozen blueberries

88 weanling rats

50 lbs. of gamebird pellets

15 lbs. of green beans

226 weanling mice

4 1/2 lbs. of finch seeds

25 lbs. of cooked brown and wild rice

400 neonate rats

40 lbs. of bird of prey mix

20 lbs. of frozen peas

40,000 mealworms

11 lbs. of lorikeet nectar

20 lbs. of frozen corn

1,500 wax worms

1 1/3 lb. of vitamins and minerals

25 lbs. of carrots

8,000 crickets

4 cases of mangos

1 case of kale

250 lbs. of pigeon seed

20 lbs. of yams

2 each canteloupe and honeydew; sometimes watermelon

1 case of assorted squash (butternut, acorn, spaghetti)