Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Bird Baths
- This topic is empty.
-
AuthorPosts
-
December 5, 2015 at 12:12 am #818813
ecojillParticipantI’m interested in bird baths and what makes a successful bird bath (and protects the birds here) besides having one on the ground for ground feeders and one higher up for other birds. Also if anyone knows where to buy them in WS, that would be great.
December 5, 2015 at 12:24 am #829183
anonymeParticipantWest Seattle Nursery has a number of lovely bird baths, as well as other birding supplies.
December 5, 2015 at 1:36 am #829184
maddyParticipantYou’ll have a better selection if you wait until the Spring. In the meantime read up on birdbath know-how on the Internet.
December 5, 2015 at 3:39 am #829185
Talaki34ParticipantInfo:
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/notes/BirdNote09_ProvideWater.pdf
http://www.seattleaudubon.org/sas/
Stores:
http://www.wbu.com/ Burien
http://www.seattleaudubon.org/sas/TheNatureShop.aspx Seattle (about 30 min)
Both of these stores have access to knowledgeable staff and classes.
Once you have your birdbath and learned how to maintain it, I would suggest doing some research into bird safety and habitat. Classes are great for this. There are also some very good books out there. Be sure that the material covered is for native birds that are here year round/seasonal and for those who use this region for migration.
Hope this will help.
December 5, 2015 at 4:38 am #829186
Barry2012ParticipantWe bought our bird bath at the west seattle nursery, The biggest tip I can give you is changing the water at least every couple of days, If you do that the birds will continue to come back over and over again, We love ours and have seen all kinds of amazing birds, and hawks!
December 5, 2015 at 4:38 am #829187
Barry2012ParticipantWe bought our bird bath at the west seattle nursery, The biggest tip I can give you is changing the water at least every couple of days, If you do that the birds will continue to come back over and over again, We love ours and have seen all kinds of amazing birds, and hawks!
December 5, 2015 at 7:02 am #829188
hollyplaceParticipantWe were gifted a bird bath last year and it sees a lot of use. My mom told us to make sure you put some rocks in it so the birds have something to stand on. We put about 5 rocks in it and put it under our butterfly bush/tree.
December 6, 2015 at 12:04 pm #829189
ws_suzanneParticipantI really like Russell Link’s recommendations in “Living With Wildlife” — http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/birdbaths/index.html. He is a biologist with WA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.
I’ve studied bird behavior for WDFW as well as other organizations, worked with biologists here and internationally, and have participated in hundreds of hours of fieldwork. On that note, I would like to mention that there is some excellent information available on the web on this topic (including Russell Link’s), and of course, a lot that experts would not recommend. For example, some of the resources posted here mention painting birdbaths. The chemicals in paint or other substance will be released into the water and are very likely to be toxic,- if not immediately, then over time. Russell Link recommends not using any chemicals at all. I would encourage his more cautious approach.
I will post more soon as I have additional information that you might find helpful.
December 6, 2015 at 3:28 pm #829190
JoBParticipanti love that you can ask a question on the forum and people jump right in and offer information without treating you like you are a moron…
there is indeed more to a birdbath or feeders for that matter than buying them and hanging them.
December 6, 2015 at 10:14 pm #829191
ecojillParticipantWow, I love all this info and JoB, yes, i really appreciate the openness of this forum! Being new to WA, I find it a bit of community and I always learn more by posting than by simply googling. And sometimes I meet cool people that share my interests. I love the idea of classes too and the reference for where they are held.
Thank you for all the info so far, and what’s to come!
December 6, 2015 at 11:00 pm #829192
KatherineLParticipantWhen I first installed my birdbath, I was warned to keep vegetation away from the base that cats could hide in to catch the birds.
I had an old dead tree that leaned away from the birdbath. (Hey, it was Garden Art!) I found the birds liked to hop up there from their baths to preen. Not everybody is lucky enough to have dead trees in their yard, but you could put up a simple stake with a high crossbar. They wouldn’t care about Art.
December 7, 2015 at 12:53 am #829193
anonymeParticipantKatherine brings up an important consideration: cats. I’m not sure I’d recommend a bird bath on the ground. I’ve found at least 5 killed birds in just the last two weeks, which I attribute to the little assassin a few houses away. I’ve caught it red handed (or should I say pawed) killing birds in my yard several times. Measures can be taken to dissuade cats from coming in your yard, but few methods are foolproof.
On a happier note, there’s nothing cuter than a birdbath filled to the brim with splashing bushtits!
December 7, 2015 at 11:31 am #829194
Talaki34ParticipantWhile it is the cats nature to engage things that move, they and other predators are only a small part of why birds die in the numbers they do. The loss of sustained habitat and a toxic environment are by far the largest contributors.
Providing a year round food and water sources is imperative. As our urban expansion continues we need to create integrated green spaces attractive to wildlife, backyard habitats and provide birdbaths/feeding stations.
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.