Birding: To enjoy and help birds, give them places to bathe – Chinook Observer

In 2018 I wrote several articles on some of the birds that were among the bathing beauties of the birdbath in our yard. Thinking back on who the visitors were, got me thinking about easy and/or interesting ways to provide water for our bird friends.

We know that water in motion attracts birds, so adding this aspect will likely bring more birds to the bath. One method I have used is to take a gallon milk jug, punch a small hole in the bottom, tie a string around the neck and hang it over the bath and let it drip. The jug could be hung from a tree branch if the bath is under a tree or it could be hung from something like a shepherds hook that is positioned over the birdbath.

Small birds such as chickadees and nuthatches are often aced out of using larger birdbaths so a small one suits them better because there is no competition from the bigger birds that cant use it. I use a piece of pottery which is designed for a small plant. I fill it daily, and it works well. Black-capped chickadees use it regularly for both drinking and bathing. They find it just the right size when it comes to taking a bath. Other small birds such a goldfinches and house finches can easily make use of it too. My miniature birdbath is about 5 inches in length, 4 inches wide across the middle and about 2 inches deep. I only fill it up to an inch and a bit to keep the depth of water relatively shallow. This ensures that it doesnt intimidate birds that dont like deep water. It is placed it on a pedestal about 3.5 feet high and close to cover, but in position to avoid droppings or other debris from falling into the water.

We seldom see songbirds bathe in such things as large, open swimming pools due to the deepness of the water. Thus, check out the depth of your birdbath. As mentioned above, tiny birds wont venture into deep water, but larger birds such as robins will. Another way to make a relatively deep birdbath more enticing for smaller birds is to put a large flat rock on the bottom to create a shallow end (about 1 inch of water) Small birds can happily use the shallow end for splashing, by sitting on the rock, while the larger birds can use the deep end.

Adding a water feature to the landscape is another way to have water in motion. A small pond with a waterfall works well if the water falls over large rocks that are relatively flat on top. Like the birdbath idea above, the flat rock provides a shallow place where small birds can splash. My pond was like this, but I recently replaced it with three basalt water towers. Fresh water splashes over each of the three, large, rock towers 24 hours a day. It is perfect for all of the birds that visit my yard, including cedar waxwings, American robins, house finches, house sparrows, and American crows. Yesterday, an orange-crowned warbler stopped by. The birds both drink and bathe. Larger birds, such as partridge or pheasant, are also drawn to the yard by the bubbling sounds of the water tumbling over the picturesque water feature. They present themselves at the base of the towers where they can easily sip from the cascading water.

A birdbath, no matter what its size or shape, especially if it includes water in motion, can encourage a greater variety of birds to stop there. Perhaps they will stay around long enough for you to see and enjoy them!

Common Birds of the Long Beach Peninsula, by Kalbach and Stauffer, is available from Bay Avenue Gallery, Time Enough Books and the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau.

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Birding: To enjoy and help birds, give them places to bathe - Chinook Observer