The Successful Birdbath

With winter coming on, sometimes water for the birds is an even greater gift than a well-stocked bird feeder.

Birds need water every day. They will seek it out wherever it's available. And that's an opportunity for backyard bird watchers. By offering a drink and a bath, you can attract birds that almost never visit bird feeders, such as eastern bluebirds, above, visiting a birdbath at Birdwatching Dot Com.

Water that beats the freeze

If you live where the weather gets below freezing, open water becomes extremely precious to birds. Offer it in your backyard, and you'll have plenty of birds visiting your yard all winter long.

We have found a couple of birdbaths with built-in heaters that work really well.

Our very favorite is the Kozy Bird Spa Heated Bath with Pedestal shown at right. The heating element is built into the bowl, and the cord runs up through the pedestal.

A Another good one is the Four Season Birdbath with Heater. It looks like natural sandstone and blends in well with landscaping.

The heater for this bath is like a weatherproof heating pad that is attached to the underside of the basin. It's great for birds such as quail that are more comfortable with a bath situated on the ground.

De-icer

Probably the most convenient heated birdbath is the kind that has a heater built in. But you can keep water open in any birdbath by adding a de-icer, an element that is submerged in the water.

The best ones, like the Gulf Stream Bird Bath Heater, are thermostatically controlled, so the heat turns off when it's not needed.

Warm-climate baths

If it seldom freezes where you live, consider the Solar Spa Birdbath. It includes a spraying fountain for the birds, powered by sunlight. No hoses or electric cords! We love having this one out in the middle of the summer garden.

You can also get a bath that is exactly like the bath shown at the top of this column, but without the built-in heater. It's the Kozy Bird Spa Unheated Bath with Pedestal.

Water in motion

Birds cannot resist water in motion. Drippy, sprinkly, or wiggly.

You can turn a still-water birdbath into a live-water bath by putting an inexpensive Water Wiggler in it. Or you might want to try the new Solar Water Wiggler, which is powered by sunlight.

Enjoy all your birds more

Watching birds at the birdbath brings great happiness to a home. It's one of the easiest ways to bring birds up close, where the whole family can get a really good look and enjoy their beauty.

— Copyright 2010 Diane Porter

— Pictures copyright 1999-2010 Michael and Diane Porter