Project Wildbird’s research phase is all but complete, and organizers are preparing their third-year results.

The massive effort was commissioned to figure out, once and for all, what birds are really eating out there. Proponents contend that previous studies do not provide conclusive evidence for the feeding and feeder preferences of the nation’s most common wild backyard feeding birds.

According to projectwildbird.org, the first two years showed the most popular seed to be Black-Oil Sunflower, fine and medium Sunflower Chips, Nyjer, and White Proso Millet.

The most frequently listed birds in the study, conducted largely by citizen scientists across the country, were:

1. House Sparrow

2. House Finch

3. American Goldfinch

4. Brown-headed Cowbird

5. Northern Cardinal

6. Black-capped Chickadee

7. Mourning Dove

8. Pine Siskin

9. Common Grackle

10. Purple Finch