How To Attract Birds To Your Birdbath, According To An Expert

Attracting birds to your backyard birdbath can be rewarding for birders of all ages and is a great way to contribute vital support to local bird populations. That said, there are several important factors to consider to make sure your birdbath actually attracts birds.

According to David Wiedenfeld, Senior Conservation Scientist at American Bird Conservancy, location, cleanliness, and design are important factors to consider if you want to attract birds to your birdbath.

How To Attract Birds To Your Birdbath

A birdbath is a place where birds can get water and bathe. 

“They can drink the water, which is sometimes important if it is very hot and there aren’t other sources of water, " Wiedenfeld explains. “They don’t need to drink a lot, though, so a birdbath is most important as a place to help them maintain their feathers.”

Feathers are very important to birds, because they keep the birds warm and–most importantly–allow birds to fly. 

“Birds have to keep their feathers in good condition to do that, so bathing is a very important activity,” Wiedenfeld says. “Bird ‘bathing’ is a lot about getting the feathers wet followed by preening, to make sure the feathers are well cared-for and lie properly. Of course, birds also use birdbaths as a source of water to drink, especially when it’s very hot or very dry.”

How To Set Up Your Birdbath

When setting up your birdbath, it’s important to consider location, accessibility, and design.

Location

The placement of a birdbath is important, because a bird that is bathing or that has just bathed and is preening is vulnerable to predators.

“This is mainly because the bird is distracted with doing other things, and isn’t able to watch for predators as much,” Wiedenfeld says. “Because of this, birds like to have a place to perch and hide nearby. This can be a shrub or shrubs, perhaps some low trees, within a few feet of the birdbath. That gives the birds a way to approach the birdbath, make sure there are no predators around.”

Once the bird has bathed, they also like to have a place to perch and preen until they have dried.

“A birdbath placed in the middle of  a large, open expanse doesn’t usually attract many birds,” he says.

Accessibility

A birdbath should be shallow enough for birds to stand in. 

“Most commercially-sold birdbaths meet this criterion, in being a fairly shallow saucer shape,” Wiedenfeld says, adding that putting rocks in a birdbath can be a good thing. “Rocks may give smaller birds a place to stand, and also make the birdbath seem more natural.”

Design

Wiedenfeld says that birdbaths don’t have to be a saucer on a pedestal. 

“Birds are very happy with a birdbath that is on the ground, as long as there is a nice shrub or low tree nearby for protection and cover,” he explains.

Tips For Attracting Birds To Your Birdbath

Wiedenfeld says there are two ways to attract birds to your bath and both revolve around keeping the area fresh.

Clean Regularly

Like bird feeders, birdbaths need to be kept clean. 

“This can mean hosing out or rinsing the birdbath every day or two,” Wiedenfeld says. “You can use detergent or bleach, but make sure the birdbath is well rinsed once you’re done. Birds can catch a lot of parasites or diseases from unclean birdbaths.”

Running Water

Having a bubbler, small fountain, or waterfall feature in a birdbath can make it very attractive to birds.

“Birds like running water, because, to them, that means it’s likely fresher and cleaner than a stagnant pool,” Wiedenfeld says. 

Are Birdbaths Seasonal?

Birds have to maintain their plumage year round, so they will bathe in the winter, even when it’s very cold. They also need water to drink year round. 

“Although streams, ponds, and lakes in the Southeastern U.S. don’t usually freeze completely, or at least not for very long, if water is frozen it can help birds if you have a birdbath heater to keep the water unfrozen,” Wiedenfeld says. “Alternatively, you can just pour in some warm water into a birdbath once a day or so, when it’s really cold.”