Creating a Bird Haven with Houses, Baths, And Feeders

There are many reasons to invest time and effort into bird attractions for the backyard: birds provide free pest-control from damaging insects such as aphids, they’re fascinating and educational to observe, and they provide beauty and song to the landscape.

For those hoping to attract a wide array of birds to their yard, it’s important to remember that birds will only stay where they feel welcome. Just like any good host, hopeful bird-watchers must meet the needs of their feathered guests if they expect them to stick around.

The basic needs of birds are no different than that of pets: they need an abundant food supply, water for drinking, bathing, and playing, and a shelter to call home.

Hosts who provide these essentials can expect their backyards to quickly populate with birds.

Benefits of Bird Houses

The bird house has come along way from the little wooden box with the slanted roof that we built as kids. Today’s birdhouses come in an interesting and educational assortment of sizes and shapes to attract everything from wrens to blue jays. They’re constructed of wood, resin, or metal and come with specifications of how high they should be hung.

The biggest benefit of a well-constructed bird house is that it can attract upwards of 50 different species of North American birds to a properly-prepared backyard and aid in the conservation of feathered wildlife where urbanity has encroached.

Types of Birdhouses

Nesting Shelf or Roosting Bag: This is a simple house, open on one side, for attracting birds like robins and swallows who typically won’t inhabit enclosed houses. They come in mounted or hanging styles and can be attached to posts or the sides of homes or suspended in trees. Nesting shelves run between $25 and $40.

Window View: Recent additions to the birdhouse market. Window view houses mount directly to a quiet, eastern-facing window of the home with suction cups and have one open side for perfect viewing of nesting activity. Birds such as chickadees and nuthatches frequent these types of houses. They can be purchased for around $30.

Multiple 8 to 12 Room: Usually mounted on sturdy poles for attracting purple martins, this type of house contains multiple rooms for nesting. It can be plain or ornate and cost anywhere from $50 to $150.

Decorative: Decorative houses usually attract small songbirds. They are typically ornate in nature, with removable panels for cleaning. Decorative houses are identified by the miniature versions of gingerbread trim, eaves, and dormers that could be found on actual homes. They may be mounted on sturdy poles, or walls, or suspended. Decorative bird houses vary in price at $50 and up.

Plain Mounted Bird House: These plainer houses can be adapted to attract everything from blue jays to wrens, by changing the size of the entrance holes. These homes can have wire mesh bottoms to protect babies from larvae, roof overhangs to protect entering birds from overhead predators, and removable panels for cleaning. These are one of the more economical style of houses to buy, and work well for beginners because of their penchant for attracting song birds. They can usually be purchased for around $25 to $40.

In addition to a bird house, in order for birds to survive and feel welcomed in any backyard habitat, a water supply must be available. Unless there is all ready a water feature present, most homeowners hoping to attract birds opt for the traditional bird bath.

Benefits of Bird Baths

The many styles of bird baths on the market today are designed to add beauty to the backyard landscape. Those with fountain or moving water features also add an element of relaxation, helping to give a plain backyard the feel of an oasis. The sound of moving water is also attractive to birds.

Types of Bird Baths

Mister: Misting birds baths attract hummingbirds. Usually found as a simple attachment that screws onto the end of a garden hose and creates a fine mist when hung on a trellis or fence, misting bird baths can run as little as $16.

Ground: The simplest, least expensive style of birdbath is the ground model. Homeowners wishing to attract large birds like geese or ducks need to invest in a ground bath. A ground bird bath can be something as ordinary as a wide, flat container, no more than 3 inches deep, that the homeowner sets on the ground and fills with water. Simple, decorative ground baths can also be purchased for as little as $20 for a basic resin model, or up to $80 for ones that are more ornate.

Hanging: Hanging bird baths are also an economical solution for those wanting to attract smaller birds like goldfinches. Hanging baths can be suspended from trees or decorative posts and can be purchased for as little as $20.

Deck-Mounted: Deck-mounted bird baths are popular because they provide homeowners with a birdseye view of their feathered guests. These baths come with mounting hardware to attach them to wooden deck railings and can be purchased for about $30 and up.

Pedestal: Pedestals are the most popular choice of homeowners because of the classic beauty they add to backyards. Pedestal bird baths consist of a basin that rests on a base that sits on the ground. Pedestals are constructed of many types of materials from plastic to concrete. They vary in price from about $40 up to $170.

Solar: Solar bird baths are typically ground or pedestal style. They keep the temperature of the water above freezing in cold climates. Because they’re solar, they use no electricity, but must be placed in full sun in order to operate properly.

There are also an assortment of accessories available that will tweak an existing plain bird bath and turn it into a fountain, solar-powered, or heated.

Incorporating bird houses and baths into the back yard, as well as a feeders, are the first steps in creating a bird-friendly environment that birds and humans alike can enjoy for many years.