And Another Look at the Bird Bath

How about one more bird bather?  Well, sure!  And here is a fine shot of one of the more vigorous bath users---a Brown Thrasher.  All of the thrushes and their allies have a great interest in bird bathing.  It's usually much greater than with the other passerines.  Nor do they seem terribly bothered by water depth in the various styles of bath here: the shallow and the somewhat deeper both get their traffic.Enjoy this look!

Another Bird Bath Memory

Yesterday's post on bird bath use got me remembering some of the fine bird bath photos I have collected over the years with the Wingscapes BirdCam.  Here's a favorite from, I believe, the brutally hot spell in June 2008.  This American Robin really got down to business and soaked itself very well.  I am sure it was a refreshing situation for the bird and a lot of fun to watch.  I remember setting the camera to video mode later and saw many entertaining robin-esque activity at that bath.  Good summer fun!

New Bath is Definitely in Use

I figured it wouldn't be a great matter of time before the first bird made use of my new, third bird bath (out in sunnier digs equipped with a solar powered fountain).  And I caught sight of the first known user, a Gray Catbird, yesterday.  This bird was having a marvelous time bathing, and went in and out a number of times in a five minute period.  Catbirds are well known enthusiastic bathers and this was no surprise.  What did surprise me was that the fountain's operation did not dissuade the bird at all.  I wondered if it would alarm them.  So we have a happy conjunction of bird, water, and garden.  You can't beat that!

New Bath. New Fountain. No Birds

This week I had the pleasure of installing a new bird bath in the sunnier part of the property (to complement and not replace the old baths out back), and I added a solar-powered fountain to create the irresistable sound of moving water.  After two days, and some BirdCam photo evidence, I have learned that the fountain works for about two hours: the panel must point at the sun.  I have also learned that no birds have dropped by for a visit yet.  The former is an unfortunate problem, but the latter can be fixed.  Birds usually need a few days to identify and inventory a new resource.  And as I only ended the two-week "Grackle Starve" at the feeders there are not a lot of birds hanging around for much time.  So I look forward to birds at the bath.  They just won't get the fountain much!

That's It For the Deicers

How quickly the seasons can change!  Just nine days ago we had our 70th, and I assume final, sub freezing night for the cold season.  And even as recently as Sunday it felt raw and arctic with a stiff wind.  Today, I read the ten day forecasts and have decided to take down the deicers.  It seems practically tropic and there are no signs of a relapse.  Even had we one, the latest it's frozen here in my time is April 19th (2001) and conditions couldn't support ice for long.  I am ready, psychologically, to move on!  So the summer bath will come out and I'll likely rig up the water wiggler which is a fine sign that the weather has normalized.  I am sure the birds will enjoy the sound of rippling water!

A Peaceable Bathtime

Years of bird bath photography has revealed to me that, in general, backyard birds can co-exist pretty well at the bath.  I regularly see differing species coming in together (as is the case with these Mourning Doves and an Eastern Bluebird) or at least one patiently waiting as another bird uses the feature.  Of course this goes on at bird feeders but not as well.  Birds especially fight or get irritable at the suet basket.  But as a human, I am pretty particular about crowds and like a little solitude.  I forget that these critters probably can't relate to me.  So I am amazed at the spirit, the peaceability of the bird bath.

Water Matters Even in Winter

One of the key requirements to Certified Wildlife Habitat designation is providing a source of water to backyard wildlife.  Even in the coldest parts of winter this is a critical need.  Birds do not seem to mind really cold water, partly to drink (necessary to digestion!) and partly to bath.  This Northern Cardinal still cleans its feathers in the dark reaches of December.  I expect there are still parasites and dirt that get in and must be worked out.  We have had excellent success with a shallow pedestal bath and an associated shallow ground level bath.  Both permit the birds to get in at an acceptable level of water and yet give space for what needs to be done.  And, in winter I have a deicer running constantly that keeps the water at least at 34F.  The equipment is very inexpensive (under $40) and if maintained properly will last for years.  And trust me, the sight of all those birds at the baths on a cold day is a heartwarmer!  they're happy--and we're happy.

Another Step Towards Winter

This weekend was a cave-in for me.  The bird bath deicer came out of storage and was rigged up.  That action is akin to trimming the old Christmas tree: wires running here and there, up and down, between the back side electrical box and the backyard bath.  The timing is right, as our part of the country usually sees its first freeze in the beginning ten days of November (although this year we scored a 29F on October 26th.  After this, who knows?  we can ordinarily expect between 30 and 40 frozen mornings and I like to present the birds with one dependable ice free location.  That photo above was taken on a bitter January morning and the bluebirds lined up for a warm drink.  Let's keep those images coming!, I think.  So I took my next step towards winter. 

Bath Just as Popular in Fall

As we inch towards winter there has been no letup at the pedestal bird bath.  It is getting heavy traffic from the birds.  I see cardinals a lot when I look but others have been seen as well: wrens, chickadees, house finches are a few.  Things will change out there soon enough.  Not from bird activity.  October is the month I swap in the deicer to keep overnight freezing from occurring.  I ended up hardly needing that feature last year! We had barely a dozen nights that got cold enough for ice, and pretty thin ice would have been it.  But I smell a much colder winter in the works and that deicer will be helpful.  However, that doesn't change the action now.  Birds will be abundant at this resource.

Happy Place

The bird baths continue to be a prime "happy place" for many of our avians.  The water is freshened daily and I've replaced the dying "Water Wiggler" so the water is advertised and churned up a little bit.  And in a shady section of the property, it never gets too hot.  What bird can resist this?  Even the stodgy Mourning Doves find the pedestal bath a congenial stopping place in their, um, busy days.  I've placed BirdCam to watch the bath for a time.  I'm eager to see how many species are getting use of this marvelous amenity.  More on that later this summer.

A Curious Sight

I am endlessly fascinated by the parade of birds that visit baths, by which ones are used (high or low), and for what purposes.  And I get terribly excited when I see something new.  Today, that was finding this photo of goldfinches---that I don't remember seeing at a bath---and at the ground level one.  Goldfinches always seem to prefer altitude when feeding, and yet this pair chose the other option.  But little will be answered today.  Did they stop only for a drink? and why now? There's just not enough data to see behavior clearly.  But what a sight!

Good Vibrations

As the weather heats up there is greater interest out there in the two bird baths.  It is always entertaining to watch the avians that enjoy this amenity.  I see quite a few robins, catbirds, and thrashers use the bath as intended, and BirdCam evidence suggests a fair number of others also like to cool off.  What really draws them in is the Water Wiggler.  This simple device agitates the water (keeping mosquitos from breeding there) and becomes an irresistible draw.  I once used drippers and such but the darn water pipes had a tendency to rupture and waste vast amounts of water.  There are no such worries with this device!  I strongly recommend it--it does the job well.

Bird Baths Drawing Crowds

The two bird baths (one pedestal, one ground level) continue to do a land office business here.  One need only peer through the kitchen windows a minute or two before a customer comes in.  And the traffic includes a fairly wide variety of species.  Everyone needs a cleaning or a drink, even if not both -- at least at my place.  Although I am waiting to see if that changes.  Cardinals, House Finches, and Chickadees are there a great deal.  The only surprise has been the lack of need for the deicers: we've nearly reached the solstice and we've racked up all of eight nights when the temperature dropped below freezing.  Well, no matter, January is on the way and that's usually a different story.  And no ice will thwart the thirsty and dirty birds!

Bird Baths Ready for Winter

In a way it felt altogether wrong today to rig up my de-icer system for the bird baths.  It was much too warm!  And the forecast out ten days sees no sub-freezing nights.  But late October is typically the time we start experiencing freeze-ups, and I would rather get the thing ready and flip the switch when needed, and ... for heavens sake! knowing that there is a chance of this mass visit of Cedar Waxwings that happened last winter, or something like it, makes the effort well worth it.  So I am prepared here.  No birds need fear a frozen pedestal or ground level bath here this winter!

Hot Enough Even For Crows

The recent heat wave brought many birds to our bird baths.  And this wave was enough even to coax down the tough American Crow.  Here's my first BirdCam image of one of these bad boys catching a drink on July 3rd about 2pm.  I have seen crows move through the back woods of the property but they almost never stop to forage or do much else.  Evidently a full dish of cool water was an overwhelming temptation!

Double the Fun

In light of the continued excessive heat (peaked at 106F today) I dragged out my second ground level bird bath, normally used in winter, and filled it, and cleaned and filled the rest.  The extra water was a huge hit today, as species after species stopped by for drinks and baths.  Here, a Brown Thrasher and Eastern Towhee enjoyed the water stations late in the afternoon.  So it was double the fun! (for me, the observer. Not so much for the birds...)  The heat wave lessens only slightly tomorrow and Monday, so the extra stations will be maintained.  I'm expecting another wave of birds!

Beating the Heat

On a day like we and many in the eastern USA experienced today, birds take advantage of water sources, and my two bird baths were certainly busy places.  Just before I posted this I observed and tried photographing this juvenile Northern Cardinal splashing about.  Even in the shade the early evening temperature is still in the triple digits!  I'll be sure to keep those baths full all weekend and give at least a few birds a great opportunity to beat the heat.

At Least One Contented Bather

It is always a fine entertainment to watch various birds as they make use of the bird baths.  But I think the best of this is provided by the robins.  I do not know quite what it is I find so amusing.  Some of the fun is the "look" after a robin soaks itself.  Some of it is the flapping and splashing needed to achieve the soak.   Whatever goes on must be satisfying, for the robins are the species that returns the most to the bath during the day, and it bears noting that the juvenile robin of the season lurks about the ground level bath every year.  The fun must continue, for us at least, and presumably for the robins.  Thus the bath is topped off each day with fresh water and cleaned regulary.  Can't have them moving to a neighbors'!

Deicer Wrap Up 2011-2012

With temperatures expected to surpass 80F later this week, I'm fairly certain we have closed the books on the winter of 2011-2012.  And this time, the bird bath deicers were barely needed.  Consider: between our first sub-freezing night (Oct. 30th) and last night, we had only 33 days in 134 where the thermometer fell below 32F.
* In none of them did the day time high fall below 35F, and that day (Jan. 3) was an exception.  It was the only winter high between 32F and 41F!
* In 10 of the 33, the low was 30F or 31F, hardly the stuff to make a bird bath freeze solid.
* The low was below 25F a mere five nights.  (Jan.3, 4, 14 and Feb. 12-13). 
I don't think the ground froze more than once!
So I will be packing up the deicer gear this week and storing it until October.  I expect that I'll need it next winter: we have mild winters but they're always followed by colder ones.  And we can't rule out much colder.  Hence I'm glad I have the gear...it has, and will, come in handy!

Thwarted Expectations on Every Count

While away on a family emergency trip this past weekend I left BirdCam to record the doings at our pedestal bird bath.  I had hoped to see more signs of the Cedar Waxwings who visited on the 16th.  That didn't happen.  I also hoped to see a wide variety of visitors.  And that didn't happen: we had a good number of Yellow Rumped Warblers (shown), a few cardinals and wrens, a Brown Headed Nuthatch, some Mourning Doves, and a squirrel.  And that was about all.  And lastly, I hoped to see good traffic especially during the coldest days.  And...that didn't happen.  The photo counts actually dried up!  I had less than ten photos on Sunday, a handful on Monday, and virtually none in the past two days.  I have found the bird bath to be an expectation-defying place.  And this weekend was no exception.  Time to watch another location!