Bird watching isn't just for adults -- it's educational and entertaining for children, too. And creating a bird sanctuary in your backyard this season can be a fun activity for the entire family.
If you'd like to make your backyard as inviting to feathered friends as human friends, start by taking a step out the back door to inventory your yard. Then gather the family for a trip to a nearby garden center and hardware store to look for four basics: a bird bath, bird feeders, bird houses and bird enticing flowering plants and shrubs.
Having a bird bath in your yard is essential to attracting birds. Birds need water for drinking as well as bathing and a bird bath will serve both purposes.
A simple ceramic or plastic bath is inexpensive and easy to assemble. Make sure not to place it near trees or bushes or other areas accessible to cats. Once in place, fill it with fresh water each day. Also, during winter months, you can keep the water from freezing by inserting a small, waterproof heating element into the center of the bath.
Wild birds continually search for food sources. Though they rely primarily on natural food supplies, such as insects and seeds, most will easily recognize and eat from a bird feeder. And, if they eat from your feeder during spring and summer, they will know to return to your yard for food during the winter months.
Bird feeders come in a variety of shapes, sizes and varieties (don't buy those feeders in the shape of a cat with its mouth open -- I don't personally know one bird that would use it). Large bird feeders can be costly and difficult for children to hang or refill, so you may opt to start with a small, pre-filled plastic feeder, that comes ready-to-use and is durable and light enough for children to hang. It can be purchased at a local garden center or hardware store and comes filled with well-balanced, nutritious, black oiled sunflower seeds, millet and milo, so that it lures a wide variety of birds.
A Feeder is also a good choice because it dispenses seed mix only when needed. This protects the seed from the damaging effects of rain, wind, snow and contamination from bird waste. And, when empty, the durable feeder can be refilled at minimal cost or put out with the recyclables.
Hang the feeder in an area where the family can watch from the porch as well as from inside the house. The feeder should be placed in an area of abundant natural shelter, such as a tree or hedge, but out of reach for squirrels, mice and cats.
Bird houses also come in many shapes and sizes. While most birds will nest in trees or bushes, some prefer a more secure and windproof site, such as a bird house. Small, single-dwelling bird houses are usually inexpensive and easily hung in a tree or from a lamp post.
Some birds, such as purple martins, are highly social and build nests in close proximity to each other. Special large bird houses, called martin houses, are available for social birds. Though installing a martin house in your yard may be costly, it will attract purple martin, swallows, and swifts, all of which eat hundreds of mosquitoes each day and will make your yard more enjoyable during the summer months.
As with bird feeders, your bird houses are best installed well out of reach of the birds' natural predators -- the family cat and dog. Bird houses should be installed on a tall post in an open area of the yard away from the house, trees and any large bushes.
A bird-friendly landscape is one that provides a habitat for nesting, eating and social activity. Trees provide natural settings for nests as well as perches for social interaction. Berry bushes and other flowering plants offer additional food and nectar. Before adding new trees, bushes or plants to the yard, ask a local garden center representative to recommend the appropriate foliage that will attract local birds. Also tell the representative about the existing plants in the yard to make sure that none are toxic to animals.
Now that your yard is bird-friendly, find an animal book or encyclopedia to help you identify the different birds flying and feasting in your yard. Then, sit back and enjoy the sights and sounds of your feathered friends.
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