Exploring Nature: Birds Need Water

It’s been a tad hot around Central Texas these past few days. Cows were giving evaporated milk. Birds were using potholders to pull worms from the ground.

While fall will bring welcome cooling, warm weather is always a great time to provide water for birds.

I do my part, with a concrete birdbath located under a huge oak tree in my backyard. I have a garden hose nearby and try to keep the birdbath filled with cool, fresh water. In addition to thirsty birds, this also attracts white-tailed deer for a cooling drink.

In addition, I have three shallow water dishes on my back deck where birds are welcome to drink and bathe. The dishes and the birdbath get lots of business on hot days.

If you want to provide water for your birds, do remember that it should not be too deep; about two inches is maximum. A shady location is preferred and don’t let the water sit around too long and become a haven for algae and mosquitoes.

The ideal situation is to have water that actively drips or moves. So a recirculating fountain or cascading pool is ideal – but these require a lot of oversight and maintenance. Some folks simply suspend a large plastic bottle with a tiny pin hole that lets water drip into the birdbath.

Birds don’t have sweat glands like mammals, so they need less water than many mammals. But they do require some and they also love to splash around to get rid of ticks and other parasites. So do your feathered friends a favor and provide some fresh, cool water until things cool down.