According to one survey, about 45 million Americans watch birds as a pastime.
If you’re someone who loves watching birds but don’t want to leave your home, there are many ways of attracting birds!
But how do you attract birds to your home? Keep reading to find out!
Leave Out Water
First, you’ll need to make sure that the birds have plenty of water to drink when they come and visit you. One of the best ways to do this is by installing a birdbath.
Birds love moving water, and they’ll be more attracted to that than if you just have water that isn’t moving. You can find all kinds of bird baths that create motion, whether it’s misting, dripping, or bubbling up. The birds will be able to hear the water from far away and be curious about it.
They’ll start to visit and then even communicate their findings to their other friends.
If you have the space for it, try and find a bigger birdbath. Some people even install waterfalls or ponds in their backyard to bring all kinds of birds.
You should also try and make sure that you have different kinds of water sources. If you just have one birdbath, a lot of birds could end up coming and feeling crowded while they’re there. instead, try to add different features in different parts of your backyard. This may even help you attract different species as well!
If you live somewhere where it’s really cold and snow, birds can get their water from the ice and snow. However, if there’s a fresh source of water, they will all come to enjoy that.
If you want to upgrade your birdbath, you can even add a heater attached to it to give the birds a little bit of warmth before they fly away.
Make Sure They Have Enough Food
In addition to water, birds are always searching for food. You can attract birds to your home by making sure they can find plenty of food there!
You should do a little bit of research and find out what types of birds live in your area first. Each species has its own separate diet. If you want to find a specific species in your yard, make sure you leave out everything that they would possibly eat.
For example, if you want to attract more chickadees to your home, you should try planting sunflowers. You can also try leaving out sunflower seeds. But if you want to attract hummingbirds, you should plant some flowers that produce a lot of nectar.
However, if you’re not looking for a specific type of species, a safe bet would be leaving out foods like:
- Berries
- Fruit
- Nuts
- Buds
- Seeds
- Nectar
- Insects
- Eggs
- Fish
- Small mammals
- Worms
- Larvae
- Vines
- Trees
- Shrubs
- Grass
The best way to leave out food for them is by getting a bird feeder, like the ones from Nature Niche.
Use Bright Colors
When the birds are up in the air, they won’t be able to see a lot of details on the ground, but they will be able to see bright and flashy colors. They may be curious about what it is and decide to go investigate.
Birds also rely on colors to figure out who is a mate, who is a predator, and if that item is even safe.
For example, hummingbirds are normally attracted to the color red, so you may want to try and plant some red flowers that offer a lot of nectar. But on the other hand, goldfinches and orioles are attracted more to orange and yellow.
If you start planting blue flowers, you’ll likely attract more bluejays.
However, you don’t have to plant flowers that color in order to bring the birds down. Any item that is that color will work. For example, if you really want to see bluejays, you can also try hanging up a bright blue bird feeder.
Give Them Shelter
If you want to bring birds to your home, you can also them somewhere to rest if the weather gets too extreme. You can do this by planting trees that will offer a lot of shade and a place of rest for them.
Evergreens are a great option because they don’t lose their leaves even in the winter. But in the summer, birds tend to gravitate toward the shade that maples, oaks, and aspens can provide.
Give Them Somewhere to Nest
Lastly, you should make sure that they have somewhere to build their nest as well. Birds want somewhere safe to lay their eggs and raise their children. If you can provide that for them, you’ll even be able to watch some baby birds fly around your backyard!
Birds feel safest when they have some sort of cover. They may decide to build their nest in a thick hedge, hollow trees, or even tall grass. However, they will also feel safe in an old mailbox, your wreath, or even a bird home you build in your backyard.
Learn More About Attracting Birds to Your Backyard
These are only a few ways of attracting birds to your backyard, but there are many more things you can try as well!
We know that it can be frustrating not being able to get birds to come to your backyard, but we’re here to help you out.
If you enjoyed this article, make sure that you explore our website to find more articles just like this one.
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