Could we be helping the birds here or enabling them to be lazy and helpless?

I put out several bird feeders earlier this later winter in hopes of taking some pictures of the birds. Always an angle to whatever anyone does, I believe. I've found the varieties of seed and equipment and necessary stuff to attract the birds.

They are here and I find myself loading up these feeders daily. THEY EAT A LOT OF SEED! They also make quite a mess under the feeders, these seeds will be sprouting all sorts of weird plants to make the lawn look stranger than the neighbors.

We have red-winged blackbirds, pigeons, sparrows, wrens, a few cardinals, grackles, one pretty yellow bird (thistle seed is expensive) and many more that I can't remember at this writing.

What do they eat if I am not there to supply the seed?

Or do they just sit in their nests and wonder what seed I will have and complain if it is not what they want as they don't have the joy of seeking out anything in scarcity or less convenient places? If humans give them seed, do the birds quit looking for it in it's usual locations? Is there no answer for this question?

I saw a fox run across the road today.