Backyard Bird Habitats

Lesson 4: Follow-up to Habitats for Backyard Birds

Sharing Your New Skills With Others

Share your new birding expertise with others! Now that you have learned how to attract an array of birds to your backyard, there are plenty of opportunities to conduct projects that will attract birds to community open spaces such as school grounds, community gardens, parks and senior citizen housing.

Adding low maintenance native plantings, birdhouses or shallow pockets to collect water on even small patches of land will provide the basic habitat requirements of food, shelter and water. Just like in the backyard, you don’t need a large patch of land to help the birds. Pages 22 and 23 of The Audubon Backyard Birdwatcher describe birds in cities and urban birdwatching. Garden Clubs, scouting groups, other community organizations, businesses and schools make great teammates. Building and decorating birdhouses and feeders is fun for kids. These make great family projects and are also good for scouts earning badges.

The National Audubon Society’s web site that is linked to this course, http://www.audubon.org/bird/at_home/ has a web page called Kidspace. It contains a Kid’s Guide to Habitat At Home and has suggestions for a backyard safari. Kids learn about organisms, biodiversity and ecosystems and need only their senses to participate. There are suggestions for birding projects and other “wild” ideas.

If you are interested in community projects, here are some examples.

Project Example #1 - Contact the administration at a local senior housing center and ask if you can plant a small, low maintenance bird garden where seniors congregate outside at the facility (or place it outside a large window, if possible). Adding birdhouses and a shallow watering area will attract even more birds. Commit to maintaining the garden and cleaning out the birdhouses at the end of the season or obtain a commitment from the administration that seniors or others will be responsible for the follow-up work.

Project Example #2 – Contact a local elementary school to volunteer to set aside a small area for a few birdfeeders and/or birdhouses near some natural shelter. There are many high quality birding curricula and other materials available on-line for free. The classes could take turns maintaining the feeders and birdhouses. Conducting a mini Bird Count at the school would be a great way to keep students enthusiastic about their new bird habitat.

Project Example #3 – Contact the local environmental agency at your town or city hall. Most cities and towns have parks or conservation areas, sometimes with walking trails. Volunteer to lead a birdwatching walk on a Saturday morning. The agency will help you publicize it in the local newspaper. It’s a great way to get out and meet your neighbors and share your birding knowledge with others.

Grants are often available for community projects. Your work will help to provide relaxing and educational experiences for others and even more habitat for native birds.

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