American Robins enjoy a stone birdbath filled with water

Provide Water:

Birds need fresh, clean water for drinking and bathing. Make your space more attractive to birds by providing water! —Few things are more attractive to them than a clean, well-maintained birdbath.

A good drinking fountain for birds should be like a shallow puddle (nature's true birdbath). Choose a shallow container that is easy to clean. Although birds prefer water basins that are on the ground consider if cats are a danger. If you think that a birdbath on the ground might be too tempting to cats, put the birdbath three or four feet off the ground. Place some sand in the bottom of the bath and arrange a few branches or stones in the container, so birds can stand on them and drink without getting wet (this is especially important in the winter).

You can try an immersion heater for keeping the water from freezing in a birdbath. These heaters are safe and cost pennies a day to operate or you could try putting a light bulb in a flower pot and place the water basin on top. The light bulb will keep the water from freezing.

 Learn more by reading BirdNotes Providing Water (PDF)

photo by R. McDonald courtesy of The Birdhouse Network

Provide Bird Feeders:

An easy way to attract birds is to put up a bird feeder. In cities it is best to use feeders with small perches suited for smaller birds that will not easily spill seed on the ground. Spilled food may attract rodents and larger flocks of unwanted birds. Nectar feeders or Nyger seed feeders are also ideal.

If bird feeders are not permitted in your building. Try a natural bird feeder! A simple potted sunflower or other seed or nectar bearing flower placed on your balcony may provide food for birds. Sunflowers are fun, colorful, and easy to grow. At least 43 bird species feed on sunflower seeds!

• Learn more about Feeding Birds the Natural Way.
• Learn Ten Ways to Landscape for Songbirds.
  
• Learn more about Winter Feeding in BirdNotes Winter Feeding (PDF)
• Learn more about creating a small garden for birds.
  

Photo by C. Hill Courtesy of The Birdhouse Network

Provide Nest boxes, nesting materials, or nesting structures:

Placing a nest box (sometimes called a birdhouse) or nesting structure in your neighborhood is a great way to attract birds. Untreated wood is best. Nest boxes should have proper ventilation holes, sloped roofs, rough interior walls, and drainage holes.  

Cavity nesting species such as chickadees, wrens, bluebirds, Tree Swallows, and many other species readily use artificial nestboxes. Invasive species such as House Sparrows and European Starlings also use nestboxes.

Visit Nestwatch to learn how to monitor nestboxes properly. Monitoring the nest boxes will help you make sure that House Sparrows and European Starlings are not using the boxes and competing with native species. These common urban species are known to destroy nests and eggs and kill nestlings and adults of native cavity-nesting species while taking over a nest site. To learn more about controlling non-native species at nestboxes, please visit: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/nestinginfo/nestboxref/non_native

Nesting Structures

To attract species that don't nest in cavities you might consider providing a nesting structure:

American Robins and Barn Swallows:

Install a nesting shelf and provide a source of mud nearby as Robins and Barn Swallows will use mud to build their nests. Here is a plan for one of these shelves: http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/wildlife/ndblinds/robin.htm

Alternatively an open nest box can be used (with one of the panels removed).

Mourning Doves:

Install a Mourning Dove nest basket in the crotch of a tree in your neighborhood. Make sure it has good cover!
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/wildlife/ndblinds/mourndov.htm

Mallards:

This Mallard nest basket might attract nesting Mallards in your neighborhood.
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/wildlife/ndblinds/mallard.htm