Blue tits at bath time
A bird bath also serves as a decoration for your garden in itself and you’ll also be rewarded by the sounds and sights of bathing birds.
What to look for
When purchasing a bird bath, look for something with some weight and stability to it. A lightweight plastic bath may be easy to carry home and set up, but it’s also too easy for a leaping predator or clumsy human to knock over. The ideal bird bath should have a narrow lip so small birds can grip it with their talons.
Choose a material with some texture to it. A smooth surface will be too slippery for birds to walk on. You may want to consider putting some smooth stones, such as river rocks, in the bottom of the bath to make a better footing for the birds. The weight of the stones will also help make the bath more stable.
The bird bath need not be more than a few inches deep. Some designs have both deep and shallow portions, so small and large birds can share the same bath.
Where to put it
Place your bird bath in a quiet, secluded part of your garden, but not so inaccessible as to make it hard for you to refill and clean it. Putting the bath out in the open is simply an invitation to the local cats and other predators to come help themselves, and birds will be unlikely to give your bath a try. A shady area will also keep the water from becoming unpleasantly hot on sunny days.
Having shrubs or other natural cover nearby will also help the birds by giving them a place to flee or perch while waiting for their turn at the bath or while preening afterward. Try experimenting by moving the bath to various parts of your garden and see where it draws the most birds.
Maintenance
Birds are more attracted to running water than still water, and running water is also more pleasant to look at and listen to. On a practical note, running water is also less likely to grow algae or mosquitoes. A small aquarium pump can do the trick, or there are various pumps and bubblers intended for use with bird baths, including solar-powered pumps.
Bird baths do require maintenance. When you refill the bath, which should be every two weeks or so, be sure to scrub off any algae or dirt. Plastic or ceramic bird baths are particularly vulnerable, although copper baths are naturally resistant to algae growth.
In fact some gardeners swear that adding a short length of copper pipe or copper coins to the water also helps keep the algae down. Once a year, you should give the bath a thorough scrubbing with a nine-to-one solution of water and bleach, rinse it with lots of water, and let it sun-dry before refilling it.
