Secrets to Getting Birds to Actually Use Your Bird Houses
Okay, you’ve added bird houses to your yard to help make a difference in
the survival of your wild birds. You
know that a lot of natural nesting places no longer exist, like old fence
posts, dead trees, and hedgerows. But
how do you entice insect-eating woodpeckers, bluebirds, wrens, chickadees,
titmice, finches, nuthatches, and tree swallows (among others) to move in to
your bird houses?
These are my secrets to entice birds to move in to those bird houses you’ve
proudly added to your yard:
- Mount your bird house
securely on a post, pole, or tree with the entrance hole facing away from
the prevailing winds. In most cases
that would be facing east; and the morning sun will gently warm the inside
of the bird house. Facing towards
the south is not a good idea because of the excessive heat and sun glare.
- Keeping your bird
houses up year round can provide much needed shelter from harsh climates
and strong stormy conditions. Birds
will huddle together inside a birdhouse to keep warm and dry during bad
weather. They will remember the
safe, secure structure and return to use it for raising their families.
- Selecting different
sizes of birdhouses will attract a variety of birds. They prefer rustic and primitive wood
structures that mimic what they would find in the wild. The appearance and thickness of barn
wood is ideally suited to maintain insulation against both heat and cold,
and tempt nesting site seekers. Old
barn wood’s very nature suggests just the right stuff to attract a wide
variety of cavity nesters!
- Birds like to have
their own territory, so spacing bird houses about 20’ to 25’ apart helps to
minimize squabbles between neighbors.
The outer perimeter or edge area of your property is the ideal
place to hang or mount a bird house.
- Chickadees especially
seem to favor a bird house that is close to shrubs like lilacs,
honeysuckle or weigela. The density
of those plants gives them a chance to survey their area for any possible
predators before proceeding to their bird house. You see they don’t want to give away the
location of their eggs or nestlings.
Bushes also provide lots of protein snacks your birds need when
they have a bunch of mouths to feed!
- Most nesting birds like
a home that is between 5’ and 10’ off the ground. Bird house entrance holes should be
between 1-1/4” and 1-3/4” in diameter to accommodate most backyard
birds. Make sure your mounting pole
is sturdy and does not sway or wobble in the wind. Our feathered friends need a secure and
reliable place to raise their young.
- Be sure to add a baffle
to your mounting pole to discourage critters from seeking out birds’ eggs
or nestlings. A torpedo baffle
works well against raccoons, while a cone-shaped baffle will deter snakes.
- Keep mice from setting
up housekeeping in your bird houses by adding mint to the inside of the
house. Mice hate mint! You can also plant a tub full at the
base of your bird house pole. That
works well for me because mint can be very invasive. Planting peppermint, spearmint or
chocolate mint in a large pot and training it up the pole makes a pretty and
fragrant garden statement.
- Fire ants can be a
nuisance at best, and are downright lethal to baby birds at worst. Peel fresh oranges and throw the peels on top
of the ant hill. You can use any
kind of citrus because fire ants hate the oils in the fruit’s skin. Fire ant deterrents containing the
volatile oils of citrus fruits are sold online and at local plant
nurseries.
- Keep your bird houses
clean! Birds will pass up a bird
house if stuff from a previous tenant has been left inside. Before nesting season begins, clean out
any debris, old nesting material, spider webs, etc. Then wash the inside of your house with
a solution of 1 part chlorine bleach and 9 parts of clear warm water. Rinse thoroughly, and set out in the
fresh air to dry totally before remounting. It is vital for the health of the next
generation of birds to take just a few minutes to perform this
cleaning. In doing so, you destroy
any parasite infestation or bacterial diseases that might otherwise claim
the lives of your baby birds.
- Birds need a nearby source
of clean water, either natural or provided by you in the form of a bird bath or fountain. Feathers need to
be preened and cleaned on a regular basis; plus, birds get thirsty just as
we humans do. Providing clean water
is always a great way to attract birds to your yard.
- Plant a vegetable
and/or flower and herb gardens.
Color and fragrance attract birds and give them a reason to nest
nearby. The critters that appear on
your flowers and veggies are tasty treats for your birds and their
youngsters. Most of our feathered
friends require a steady diet of protein-rich bugs and creepy
crawlies.
Hanging up a bird house comes with a responsibility to the birds that will
use it for raising their young. Place it
where they will be happy to use it, and keep it clean. Do this and you will have a yard full of
happy, healthy adult and new baby birds!
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