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26 chapters
For the Birds
For the Birds
http://birds.fws.gov March 2001 Among the fondest and most memorable moments of childhood are the discoveries of songbirds nesting in the backyard. The distinctive, mud-lined nests of robins and their beautiful blue eggs captivate people of all ages. Likewise, the nesting activities of house wrens, cardinals, chickadees and other common birds can stimulate a lifelong interest in nature. As you learn to enjoy the beauty of birdlife around their home, you may wish to improve the “habitat” in your
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Backyard Bird Feeding
Backyard Bird Feeding
When you want to attract a particular bird species and keep it coming back to your backyard, what you do will be determined by where you live, and the time of year. For example, on any winter day, you are likely to see a cardinal at a sunflower feeder in Virginia, a goldfinch at a thistle feeder in Massachusetts and hummingbirds at a nectar feeder in southern California. A bird field identification book has pictures of different birds and will help you find the names for the birds you’re likely
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Feeder Selection
Feeder Selection
When the ground is covered with snow and ice, it’s hard to resist just tossing seed out the door. But it’s healthier for the birds to get their handouts at a feeding station, rather than off the ground. Regardless of the season, food that sits on the ground for even a short time is exposed to contamination by dampness, mold, bacteria, animal droppings, lawn fertilizers and pesticides. You can start simply with a piece of scrap wood elevated a few inches above the ground. Add a few holes for drai
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Placement
Placement
Where do you want to watch your birds? From a kitchen window ... a sliding glass door opening onto a deck ... a second-story window? Pick a location that is easy to get to. When the weather is bad and birds are most vulnerable, you may be reluctant to fill a feeder that is not in a convenient spot near a door or an accessible window. Also, pick a site where discarded seed shells and bird droppings won’t be a cleanup problem. Put your feeder where the squirrels can’t reach. Squirrels become a pro
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Durability
Durability
Bird feeders are made from a variety of materials. You can buy disposable plastic bag feeders; feeders made of cloth, nylon, vinyl and metal netting; clear, lexan, colored and PVC plastic tubes; ceramic and terra cotta; redwood, western cedar, birch, pine and plywood; sheet metal and aluminized steel; glass tubes and bottles. How long a feeder lasts depends on how well you maintain it, the effects of weather, and whether squirrels can get to it. Water can get into any feeder regardless of how ca
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How Many Birds
How Many Birds
If too many birds at your feeder become a problem, you can control their numbers by putting out smaller amounts of seed, or by using specialty seeds or restrictive feeders that will attract only certain species. If you fill your feeder only when it’s empty, the birds will look for food elsewhere. You can encourage small birds and discourage large birds with feeders that restrict access. Wood feeders with vertical bars and feeders covered with wire mesh frustrate larger birds. The most non-select
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Uninvited Guests at the Birdfeeder
Uninvited Guests at the Birdfeeder
Once you get your bird feeding station up and running, you may run into problems with two kinds of uninvited guests—those interested in the seeds (squirrels and chipmunks, rats and mice, and starlings and house sparrows), and those interested in eating a bird for dinner (cats and hawks). When a squirrel is at the feeder, you’re not likely to see birds. Squirrels will scare off the birds while they eat the seed and sometimes they will eat the feeder too. The simplest solution is a squirrel-proof
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Questions about Feeding Wild Birds
Questions about Feeding Wild Birds
Usually, whenever the weather is severe, birds will appreciate a reliable supplemental food source. In northern areas, start before the onset of cold weather so birds have time to find the feeder. Although you can feed birds year-round, especially with fruit and nectar, you can stop feeding seeds once a reliable supply of insects is available in the spring. There is no evidence that feeding hummingbirds after Labor Day will keep them from migrating. In fact, it may help a weakened straggler refu
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Homes for Birds
Homes for Birds
Many of the birds that visit feeders and baths may stay and nest in nearby trees. Most of them, including cardinals, doves and orioles, don’t nest in boxes. You can still help them by considering their food and shelter requirements in your landscape plans. More than two dozen North American birds nest in bird houses. The following descriptions will help you determine which birds might visit your neighborhood. If you put up a bluebird house near an old field, orchard, park, cemetery or golf cours
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Materials
Materials
Wood is just about the best building material for any birdhouse. It’s durable, has good insulating qualities and breathes. Three-quarter-inch thick bald cypress and red cedar are recommended. Pine and exterior grade plywood will do, but they are not as durable. It makes no difference whether the wood is slab, rough-cut or finished, as long as the inside has not been treated with stains or preservatives. Fumes from the chemicals could harm the birds. There’s no need to paint cypress and cedar, bu
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Design
Design
How elaborate you make your bird house depends on your own tastes. In addition to where you place the box, the most important considerations are: box height, depth, floor dimensions, diameter of entrance hole and height of the hole above the box floor. Refer to the following chart before building your nest box, keeping in mind that birds make their own choices, without regard for charts. So don’t be surprised if you find tenants you never expected in a house you intended for someone else....
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Nest Box Dimensions
Nest Box Dimensions
Now that you have the correct dimensions for your bird house, take a look at how to make it safe: ventilation, drainage, susceptibility to predators, and ease of maintenance....
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Ventilation
Ventilation
You should provide air vents in bird boxes. There are two ways to provide ventilation: leave gaps between the roof and sides of the box, or drill ¼ inch holes just below the roof....
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Drainage
Drainage
Water becomes a problem when it sits in the bottom of a bird house. A roof with sufficient slope and overhang offers some protection. Drilling the entrance hole on an upward slant may also help keep the water out. Regardless of design, driving rain will get in through the entrance hole. You can assure proper drainage by cutting away the corners of the box floor and drilling ¼-inch holes. Nest boxes will last longer if the floors are recessed about ¼ inch....
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Entrance Hole
Entrance Hole
Look for the entrance hole on the front panel near the top. A rough surface both inside and out makes it easier for the adults to get into the box and, when it’s time, for the nestlings to climb out. If your box is made of finished wood, add a couple of grooves outside below the hole. Open the front panel and add grooves, cleats or wire mesh to the inside. Never put up a bird house with a perch below the entrance hole. Perches offer starlings, house sparrows and other predators a convenient plac
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Accessibility
Accessibility
Bird houses should be easily accessible so you can see how your birds are doing and clean out the house. Monitor your bird houses every week and evict unwanted creatures such as house sparrows or starlings. Be careful when you inspect your bird boxes—you may find something other than a bird inside. Don’t be surprised to see squirrels, mice, snakes or insects. Look for fleas, flies, mites, larvae and lice in the bottom of the box. If you find insects and parasites, your first reaction may be to g
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Bird House Placement
Bird House Placement
Where you put your bird house is as important as its design and construction. Cavity-nesting birds are very particular about where they live. If you don’t have the right habitat, the birds are not likely to find the house. You can modify your land to attract the birds you want to see by putting out a bird bath, planting fruit-bearing shrubs, including more trees or installing a pond with a waterfall. Once you’ve matched up the right bird house with the appropriate habitat, you have to know where
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Protection from Predators
Protection from Predators
Nesting birds are extremely vulnerable to cats, as are fledglings and birds roosting for the night. Bell collars on cats offer birds little protection. Nailing a sheet metal guard or cone to a tree trunk is unsightly, but may deter less agile felines. Houses mounted on metal poles are the most difficult for predators to reach, especially if you smear the poles with a petroleum jelly and hot pepper mixture. The best deterrent is for owners to keep their cats inside whenever possible. Pet dogs are
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Attracting Birds
Attracting Birds
As people learn to enjoy the beauty of birds around their home, they may wish to improve the “habitat” in their yard so that more birds will visit their property. You can attract birds by placing bird feeders, nest boxes and bird baths in your yard, and by planting a variety of trees, shrubs, and flowers. These can provide good nesting sites, winter shelter, places to hide from predators and natural food supplies that are available year-round....
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Landscaping for Birds
Landscaping for Birds
The most surefire way to attract birds to your backyard is to make certain the appropriate habitat is available to them. You may be lucky and already have a good supply of food, shelter, and water available for our feathered friends. In that case, you have to do little more than stand back and watch. However, for most backyards, bird habitat must be created. It’s called “landscaping for birds” and it can be as simple or extravagant as you wish. Whatever the approach, anyone who has ever tried th
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Benefits of Landscaping for Birds
Benefits of Landscaping for Birds
You can derive many benefits from landscaping to attract birds to your yard: You can probably double the number of bird species using your property with a good landscaping plan. By carefully arranging your conifer and hardwood trees, you can lower winter heating and summer cooling bills for your house. Certain landscape plants can prevent soil erosion. A good landscaping plan contributes to a beautiful, natural setting around your home that is pleasing to people as well as birds. Wildlife photog
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Basics of Landscaping for Birds
Basics of Landscaping for Birds
Landscaping for birds involves nine basic principles: Every bird species has its own unique food requirements that may change as the seasons change. Learn the food habits of the birds you wish to attract. Then plant the appropriate trees, shrubs, and flowers to provide the fruits, berries, seeds, acorns, nuts and nectar. You may be able to double the number of bird species in your yard by providing a source of water. A frog pond, water garden, or bird bath will get lots of bird use, especially i
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Plants for Wild Birds
Plants for Wild Birds
Seven types of plants are important as bird habitat: Conifers are evergreen trees and shrubs that include pines, spruces, firs, arborvitae, junipers, cedars, and yews. These plants are important as escape cover, winter shelter and summer nesting sites. Some also provide sap, fruits and seeds. Grasses and legumes can provide cover for ground nesting birds—but only if the area is not mowed during the nesting season. Some grasses and legumes provide seeds as well. Native prairie grasses are becomin
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How to Get Started
How to Get Started
Think of this project as landscaping for birds. Your goal will be to plant an assortment of trees, shrubs and flowers that will attract birds. If you plan carefully it can be inexpensive and fun for the whole family. The best way to get started is to follow these guidelines: Decide what types of birds you wish to attract, then build your plan around the needs of those species. Talk to friends and neighbors to find out what kinds of birds frequent your area. Attend a local bird club meeting and t
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Protecting Bird Habitat
Protecting Bird Habitat
Each year your state wildlife agency, private conservation groups, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, other federal agencies, and many private landowners and business leaders work together to conserve and manage millions of acres of habitat—swamps, forests, ponds and grasslands. These habitats provide nesting habitat for songbirds and shorebirds, ducks and geese, hawks and owls. You can make a difference in helping protect habitats for migratory birds by joining Partners in Flight, a cons
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Additional Resources
Additional Resources
A large variety of books are available on attracting, housing, feeding, and gardening for birds. Check your local library, book store, or the Internet, for a selection of books on attracting birds to your yard. There are many good on-line resources for bird enthusiasts. Below are a few useful web sites that discuss some of the more popular backyard birds; general information on bird feeding, housing, and gardening for birds; ways to keep birds safe from predators; and opportunities for you to be
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