Creating a Bird Sanctuary in Your Backyard

You might think you need a big space to create a backyard bird sanctuary, but birds require just four basic things to thrive: food, water, cover and a place to raise young. With these items, you can create a bird-friendly habitat as small as your patio or as large as your entire backyard.

Feeding stations are a surefire way to attract birds to your backyard sanctuary. Birds can be fed year-round if you keep feeders clean, ensure food doesn't spoil and reside in an area without bear activity.  

When choosing a feeder, consider the types of birds you want to attract. Ground birds (sparrows, doves, robins, etc.) prefer ground-level platform bird feeders. Shrub birds (cardinals, finches, etc.) favor hanging hopper-style feeders with perches. Tree birds (woodpeckers, chickadees, nuthatches, etc.) flock to suet and nut feeders, especially in the winter. Nectar-loving birds (hummingbirds and orioles) are drawn to feeders that hold fruit or sugar water.

Black oil sunflower seed is the most versatile food for feeders because it is a high-energy seed many bird species favor. Unsalted peanuts are also well-liked by many birds, including chickadees, titmice, woodpeckers, jays, wrens, kinglets, catbirds, cardinals and crows. Nyjer seed (better known as thistle) is a good choice for finches. Mealworms are favored by insect eaters like bluebirds and wrens.

In addition to food, birds need fresh water to drink and bathe in in all four seasons. Water can be provided in a pond, bird bath, or small dish, such as a pie plate or plant saucer. The water should be shallow — about one inch deep or less — so small birds can bathe safely.

While bird feeding stations are a great resource, it's the native plants in your backyard that truly form the backbone of a bird-friendly habitat. By incorporating native trees, shrubs, grasses and flowers, you're enhancing the beauty of your landscape and creating a safe haven for birds.

A native plant is a plant that occurs naturally in a specific region. These plants grow or attract the berries, seeds, and insects that birds need to survive. The best plants for your yard will depend on where you live, the soil type, precipitation levels, the amount of sun and shade you have, the types of birds you want to attract and other variable factors.

When it comes to trees and shrubs, you may want to look for species that provide shelter, support nesting birds, or grow seeds, nuts, or berries that native birds like to eat. Vines and flowers should also produce bird-friendly seeds or nectar. Many annuals and perennials in the Asteraceae family, such as zinnias, sunflowers and coneflowers, fall into this category. Colorful nectar-producing plants with tubular flowers, such as cardinal flowers, trumpet vines and bee balm, are especially well-suited for hummingbirds. 

You can find bird-friendly native plants for your zip code using the native plant database from the National Audubon Society or the native plant finder from the National Wildlife Federation.

In addition to providing cover and food, native shrubs and trees attract nesting birds to your yard. Most North American birds nest in late spring and early summer. Many birds like to make their nests on the branches of shrubs and trees, and others like to make their nests in natural hollows in trees and stumps. Some birds, like wrens, are less discerning and make their nests in flower pots, mailboxes, old boots or anything else they find in the yard.

If you lack the shrubs and trees birds may want to nest in, you can install one or more birdhouses in your backyard. Birdhouses should be made of untreated, unpainted wood (cedar, pine and cypress are best). They should also have sloping roofs to keep out rain and predators and three or four small holes drilled in the floor for drainage. It is also essential to ensure the house's entrance hole is neither too big nor too small for the nesting bird you're trying to attract.

You can learn about nesting birds, get free birdhouse plans, identify bird eggs and sign up to become a certified NestWatcher for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology on NestWatch.org.

More than one billion birds are killed annually by environmental threats in their habitat. You can make your backyard safer for birds by eliminating broad-spectrum pesticides, keeping cats indoors and hanging bird feeders in sheltered areas.

Assessing your windows for bird collision risk is also a good idea. Birds are less likely to collide with windows that have screens or blinds. Windows with translucent films, UV adhesive decals and other inexpensive products applied to the outside glass are also more visible to birds. You can learn more about preventing threats to birds from the American Bird Conservancy.

Watching the bird activity is one of the enjoyable aspects of having a backyard bird sanctuary. Seeing and hearing birds lowers stress levels and positively impacts our mental well-being. It is also entertaining. Birds can be cute, clever, funny, moody and dramatic. Watching them is like seeing a soap opera play out in the backyard.

If you'd like to learn how to identify and keep track of the birds you see and hear in your backyard bird sanctuary, a good field guide or a free birdwatching app like Merlin Bird ID can help. If you'd like to share your observations with scientists, you can join a citizen science project like eBird, Project FeederWatch or the Great Backyard Bird Count.

To keep backyard birds healthy, most bird feeders should be cleaned at least twice monthly and even more often in hot, humid or rainy weather. Feeders should be washed with soap and water, sanitized with a dilute bleach solution (one part bleach to nine parts water) and rinsed with clean water. Nectar feeders should be cleaned every two to three days.

Water in bird baths and drinking dishes should be replaced every two days to control mosquitoes and eliminate potential pathogens. Avoid soaps and bleach, and instead, use a dilute vinegar solution (one part white vinegar to nine parts water) to clean the bath/dish and rinse it with fresh water. Synthetic cleaners can damage bird feathers. 

When maintaining your native plant garden, focus on watering new plants, removing invasive weeds, and pruning shrubs and trees to keep them healthy. Outside of this, consider taking a less-is-more approach. For example, you can leave seed heads on plants in the fall rather than deadheading them so that overwintering birds have a food resource. You can also rake less and use crushed fallen leaves as natural mulch around your plants. These leaves will also provide a habitat for the invertebrates that birds eat.