How do bird baths work

Not much you can say about a bird bath really other than its a dish that stores water for wild birds to drink or bathe, though it can be hard to attract birds to.

How do bird baths work will rely on what bird bath you have in use; most common bird baths utilize a simple water dish, that simply stores water until its changed or dries up. Bird baths have no functionality, thus its a static water source that holds still water for wild birds to use in your yard.

Unlike a bird feeder used to dispense bird feed or a Hummingbird or Oriole nectar-filled feeder that vacuum seals nectar, for it to be sipped on at the port wells; bird baths have no kind of functionality whatsoever.

Sure, bird baths do come with a built in fountain - which I must say is an important feature to be included - yet most common bird baths are usually static with still water in a dish.

Bird baths will come in three types: it will be a bird bath on a stand; a bird bath on the ground; or a bird bath suspended on chains.

People won't often know what each type provides them other than what they like, but each type of bird bath can serve an important function.

Take the ever popular bird bath on a stand or pedestal, this elevated bird bath will be used as a way to fill a void in the yard, where it will act as a bird bath or ornament.

I will say bird baths that sit up to three feet off the ground can be a pain to stabilize in the wind, but it isn't something that can't be fixed.

Ground level bird baths can be attractive to what might be mostly ground foraging birds in the yard, but again it could just be ornamental. And when using a hanging bird bath, the user could be hoping to avoid pets or pests accessing the water.

Bird baths only work if they are attended to regularly, as water will become stale in the heat, yet freeze over in the winter.

Mold will always need sterilizing and so to will the algae need to be cleaned; all of which I hope you can avoid any hint of it as you clean the bird bath two or three times a month.

Basic water-filled basin

Surely you know what a bird bath is right? Its simply a shallow or deep, bowl or dish that is filled with water for wild birds to take a bathe, or to drink on the accessible water.

How any static bird bath works will require the bird bath dish to be filled with water to an appropriate level, then left for wild birds to help themselves.

Bird baths will come on a stand up to three feet high, it can be close to the ground, or why not make use of a bird bath you can hang on a bracket or branch.

What all these types of bird baths have in common is that there will always have some kind of water-filled basin.

Bird bath basins trap water with no way for water to be filtered out or emptied like a real bath would.

Instead, when you come to changing out the water in a bird bath, you will have to tip it out by tipping over the bird bath. Where it can go wrong is if your bird bath is anchored to the ground to prevent it tipping, thus you won't be able to tip the water out for hygiene sake.

So you see, there's little that goes into a bird bath other than rocks or pebbles to make it more attractive to birds; and so to can the water level be made shallow as pebbles line the base of any kind of bird bath in use.

Bird baths have NO functionality

What you must understand with any bird bath sitting on a three feet tall pedestal, a bird bath that goes on the ground or is suspended off chains - is that each one will be a static bird bath with still water in the basin.

Downside to a bird bath with no functionality - and many of them will have none - is that it will be incredibly hard to attract birds to a bird bath, unless it emits the noise of running water, via a fountain feature or dripper.

Bird baths work to attract backyard birds to a water source rather than what a bird feeder does to provide bird feed.

Bird feeders will continue to be the number one designation although a bird bath will always be secondary, if that reassures you at all.

Make your bird bath clearly visible by sharing a space near the bird feeders, along with what must be a solar powered fountain feature used to make the sound of running water, as the fountain creates a gentle waterfall-like feature.

How a solar powered fountain feature works is it must be placed in a wide open bird bath basin; preferably flat but shallow in order for the solar powered feature to function in direct sunlight only.

Built-in solar powered bird baths operate in a similar way, only the functionality is already part of the bird bath build, and therefore ready to go on the on-switch.

Attract birds to bathe or drink

How a bird bath works is to simply store a shallow level of water - say between one and two inches only - to allow wild birds to drink the water without getting their feet wet as they perch around the rim.

Similarly, wild birds will on occasion want to get their feet wet in order to cool down, as they enter the water to bathe.

Birds must clean their feathers in order to keep them in working order, as a result they will spend time preening their feathers as they appear to make splashing in the bird bath basin.

What the bird bath looks like or what color it is won't matter as much as safety and accessibility, with all size wild birds preferring a shallow bird bath basin - up to one inch only - so they can preen or hydrate with ease.

Of course, our common backyard birds must drink to so they can survive in the hotter months of the year.

To do that they will simply drink the water by perching anywhere around the bird bath rim, while leaning over to poke their bills a little way into the water.

Fill a bird bath quite shallow but never fill it so it floods over the edge of the basin, as it spills water on the ground. Its important to keep water in the bird bath by filling it half the depth of the basin - yet don't make it so shallow the larger birds find it hard to bathe.

Conclusion

Really there isn't much to talk about of an humble bird bath - the kind that sits or hangs out in your yard - as it features any kind of basic dish or bowl that is designed to hold water for wild birds to come and go, as they need to bathe or drink.

Bird baths don't get used heck of a lot thus you can expect stone or cement bird baths to act as an ornament, thus it can be an ornamental bird bath rather than a working bird bath.

Bird baths are really the basin that the water goes in, so a basic bowl or dish will sit on top of a stand; it will be suspended on chains; or you can utilize a ground bird bath that sits very low to the ground.

Bird baths are a static water source that will store a deep or shallow level of still water.

Still water with no sounds of running water will make it hard on you to attract wild birds to your particular quiet bird bath feature. And with that, people like to sit a solar powered fountain in the water to liven up this once quiet water source.

Bird baths sold off the shelves have no functionality whatsoever, unless of course you buy a built-in fountain feature which can be expensive.

How a bird bath works is it will store water for a period of time - until its changed out for hygiene purposes - then birds will come along to either drink the water or bathe.

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