How To Help The Birds In Your Garden Or Yard

These days all the birds that you will see in your yard really do need your help and whatever you can do will benefit them. Unfortunately today the wild populations of many different species of bird are declining and some very drastically.

There are of course many reasons for this such as habitat loss, environmental degradation and many different diseases too. In addition there are other losses due to birds colliding with hard to see structures that we have built across the landscape. Also many other factors, some of which we do not fully understand yet, continue to contribute to these major declines in wild bird numbers across the nation.

Create A Wildlife Sanctuary For Your Birds

One of the biggest ways in which you can currently help you local wild birds is by trying to turn your garden or yard into your own private wildlife sanctuary where the birds can live in an environment that gives them many of the things that they need each day. Then as more birds visit you will be able to practice your bird watching skills even more.

First of all it is the loss of good bird habitat that is now probably the biggest threat facing many wild bird species. So you can help and make a real difference simply by making your own yard or garden much more attractive to your local birds by landscaping it with some native plants that will be able provide them with more natural food sources than currently exist there.

Putting up a birdhouse nest box will also help as hole nesting sites are difficult for birds to find in the wild these days and if you fit a bird cam to the bird house you will be able to watch your own garden birds raising a new family in the breeding season.

Provide Natural Food And A Nesting Habitat

A bonus result of this is that you will also be providing them with better shelter from the worst of the elements as well as better protection from their predators. In addition the extra trees and shrubs that you plant will also give them more nesting site options, which really can help them a lot.

You can then go one step further and start providing them with well-stocked bird feeders as well as relevant nest boxes during the nesting season, which will also be used during the winter months for roosting and getting away from the bad weather.

Bird Feeders And A Bird Bath Are A Good Way To Start

A good clean water source will also benefit you wild birds and putting out a bird bath for them to drink from and bathe in is a really helpful thing to do, especially in drier regions. If you have freezing winter weather then a heated bird bath is the best way to help the birds.

For all these products you can shop at our store or if you prefer to shop locally just go to your neighborhood wild bird food store, who will be able to help you out for sure.

But remember that once you start feeding you must carry on especially in the winter as the local birds in your area will quickly come to rely on you for their survival!

Provide Different Bird Food For Different Birds

It is essential that when you feed the birds that you are always providing them with the appropriate types of bird foods and you should do this all year round. This will have the effect of attracting more birds and bird species to your garden or yard for you to watch. In addition it ensures that your wild birds will have a safe nutritious diet to keep them going every day.

Birds need to eat constantly all day just to survive, especially when the weather turns colder so make sure to always refill your feeders regularly with the right food that is best for all the different types of birds in your local area. Just checkout the bird food and bird feeders in our store to see what is now available for all the different bird that you will see when bird watching at home.

Keep Bird Feeding Areas Clean To Stop Disease

It really is very important that in order to help in reducing the risk of disease transmission in all of those birds that will visit your bird feeders, you must clean both the feeders and feeding areas regularly and at least once a month to keep your bird healthy.

And it will help a lot if you can move the bird feeders to different locations periodically as this helps to prevent the obvious buildup of any waste and droppings on the ground around the feeder. Also always keep your bird seed and all other bird foods that you provide dry as mold can be a real killer among birds.

You really do need to just discard any bird food you see that looks bad or even smells a bit musty. Any bird food that is wet or just looks a bit moldy should be immediately discarded.

Clean Your Bird Feeders Regularly

You should regularly rake up and then dispose of any seed husks that are dropped under the bird feeders by the birds. And any metal or plastic bird feeders you have should be properly cleaned as often as you can and in fact these go into your dishwasher to make the job easier. Alternatively you can rinse these types of feeders with solution of warm water and bleach in a ratio of ten parts warm water to one of bleach.

If you are fortunate enough to have hummingbirds in your yard then their feeders really should be cleaned out thoroughly every three, four or five days, but this should be increased to a minimum of every other day in periods of warmer weather.

Remember that all these chores are just part of what you need to do to help the birds and enjoy your bird watching even more.

You will also need to scrub out your bird bath with a stiff brush every three to five days or so and then replace all the old water with fresh and this will also have the benefit of stopping mosquito reproduction in the bird bath.

Note that after doing any of these tasks it is essential from a hygiene point of view to wash your hands thoroughly and in fact you should also do this even after filling the feeders with bird food.

Keep Chemicals Of All Types Away From The Birds

Today we use many chemicals for many different things in our homes and around the yard, but these are really bad for the birds in all cases. All the pesticides we use in our yards as well as the herbicides and fungicides are all very toxic and lethal to your wild birds, so always totally avoid using them in any areas that are near to where your birds will be feeding, nesting, bathing or roosting. You should first check the directions provided on the product before using in your yard anyway!

Pet Cats And Birds Do Not Mix!

Some of you may not wish to hear this but if you really care for the birds in your yard then you need to realize that a cat is probably the biggest threat to a bird’s survival when it visits your yard to feed!

It is a proven fact that pet cats kill many birds!

It has been estimated by top scientists that cats kill hundreds of millions of birds each year across the nation and this really is huge problem for birds, but it is just not an easy one to fix it seems. There are many people who really do enjoy feeding all the wild birds and bird watching, but they also really love cats too.

The best solution that really works is to keep your cat indoors. In fact in this way a cat will lead a much longer and healthier life anyway. And the other significant benefit of this is that your garden or yard will simply be a much safer place for the birds to visit.

However your neighbors may not feel the same way, so it is always best to install your bird feeders and bird bath in an area that is just not readily or easily accessible to any cat and if possible you can install a fence or a similar barrier to try and keep any other wandering cats well away from the bird feeding and bathing areas on your property.

Unfortunately bells on cat collars, as well as de-clawing your cat or keeping your cat well fed just does not work as the primeval instinct of all cats is to hunt whether they are hungry or not!

Try Hard To Stop Bird Window Collisions

Apart from pet cats, the greatest number of birds that we kill each year is due to birds colliding with the glass windows of our homes or other buildings on our properties.

Our windows literally kill millions of wild birds every year!

Due simply to their actual size or location in your home some of your windows will actually reflect the sky above or the vegetation around your home in such a way that the birds are tricked into thinking that they are not glass, but just part of their natural environment and that therefore they can just fly straight through them. But of course they can’t and this has disastrous results!

You try to help eliminate this type of problem by identifying any windows on your property that might cause these types of collisions. These typically will be those larger or more reflective windows. Some of them are more likely to be those that are nearer the ground, but often it is the angle of the bird’s flight toward the window that determines what they see.

So by simply attaching some decorative decals to these windows or other items to the outside of the window glass can help to reduce those reflections or make the space seem smaller to stop the birds trying to fly though.

Often it is birds from your feeder fleeing away from predators in a blind panic that are the most vulnerable to these window collisions. So in this case you should think about moving those birds feeders close to the window, about a yard away, so then your feeding birds will not be able to accelerate much by the time they reach the window.

Also if you have problems with your own windows then they can simply be covered up with a screen to ensure that the birds bounce right off harmlessly before hitting the lethal glass.

Natural Bird Habitat Provides A Better Bird Watching Experience

So if you can provide a wildlife sanctuary for the wild birds in your yard you will have an environment that is safer and healthier for any birds that visit and as a result you will see many more birds in your yard every day!

By following the tips outlined above any birding enthusiast, new or old, will be helped a great deal in their own efforts of attracting a wider variety and higher number of birds on to their own property and a result of this will be much better bird watching at home with many more different species on view.

Probably the most important thing you can do first is to take action.

Just do something, whatever it is, to get started!

Remember that you as an individual really can help to change the world we live in and quickly make it a much better place for many of the wild birds in your area.

Enjoy watching the birds at home and everywhere else!

Please checkout the BIRD HOUSES and BIRD FEEDERS at our store.

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