Megan's Nature Nook
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It’s that time of year again! Birds are getting ready to start building their nests! Last weekend Tony texted me asking if I had any nesting materials out yet because you saw a Black-capped Chickadee collecting moss from planters and later that afternoon I saw a House Finch with grasses in its beak. It was time I got my nesting materials put out! I’ve read many different posts, articles, and websites with information on what and how to offer nesting materials to birds; some of these conflicting with others. So, in this post I will let you know what I offer for birds and some of the materials that are good, and others that aren’t so good. Good Things to Offer:
Things to Avoid:
How to Offer Materials:
I usually try to offer more of the materials that birds aren’t going to find as easily in my yard such as fur and hair. Birds are very resourceful and can build their homes without our help at all. That is why I leave natural materials like moss, bark, and grasses for them to find themselves instinctively and offer those harder to find items in a clean suet cage. If you enjoy watching the birds gather their materials, feel free to offer as many different things as you like. Other Things to Do to Help Nesting Birds:
I put my nesting materials in a clean suet cage and hang it near my other bird feeders so the bird can easily find it. I stuff my suet cage with as much as I can get into it. I put Harold hair (cat), Wiggles hair (dog), llama fiber, Tony hair, and Tony beard hair in my suet cage this time. Tony must be a keeper if I didn’t scare him off when I asked if I could keep his hair trimmings after I gave him a haircut, and then when he complied and saved his beard trimmings after he shaved his beard that he’d been growing for seven months. It will be interesting to see if the birds have a preference of which hair is the best. Hopefully the birds will enjoy some of the out of the ordinary, "luxury" nesting materials I have to offer this year and will make my yard their home so I can continue to enjoy them! Happy Spring, happy nesting, and happy birding!
2 Comments
Elana
5/16/2018 02:47:45 pm
I like this list! Thanks for helping me help out my bird friends ♥
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Megan Betcher
5/16/2018 05:17:50 pm
Thanks for reading and commenting, Elana! I love finding ways to help my feathered friends, too!
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