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Saturday, December 3, 2011
Author: Ken Lawless
When your design a bird friendly garden, protecting them from predators or interlopers, is one of the most important things to consider.
For instance, quite a few bird lovers love to put up bird feeders and feeding stations in their back yards and gardens to attract their bird friends. Unfortunately, however, squirrels have an almost unmatched fondness for these same kinds of foods.
Because of this, even if your garden has plenty of food, many birds find themselves competing with squirrels for access to these feeding stations. And, homeowners become frustrated as well as their intention is to feed the birds, not the squirrels.
As luck would have it, the free market has taken note of this piece of information, and as a consequence, a multi-million dollar business has developed around the design and production of squirrel proof feeders. These are great for the homeowner in that it saves them money by them not having to replenish the feeding stations as much. And, it saves them aggravation. And the birds love not having to put up with the antics of squirrels as well.
But, in the U.S., the real danger to birds and their families who set up lodging in your back yard, is cats. Particularly, in the city where many stray cats roam free from garden to garden. Cats can be such cute animals, and they have lived with us for centuries. But, they are responsible for killing millions of birds every year and are one of the birds biggest predators.
There is no way that you can protect the birds 100% of the time. But, there are ways to at least mitigate the amount of damage that they can cause.
You can begin by taking away their camouflage and hiding spaces. By nature, cats are among the stealthiest of predators. Primarily, they love to hunt by taking shelter behind bushes or trees and slowly and stealthily sneaking up on their prey until they are close enough to pounce and make the kill. When you take away their hiding areas, they can no longer sneak up on the birds.
Therefore, place the feeders away from the bushes and trees. Also, move them to regions where the birds can easily locate a cat or other predator that tries to sneak by.
Mammals are not the only predators that birds have. The smaller birds have to watch out for bigger birds as well. Unfortunately, there is not much that you can do about that. You just have to accept it as a way of life that sometimes bird predators will kill other birds. It is the way nature intended. And you can no more protect your bird friends from dangers than you can protect the children of your own family.
The best thing, however, that occurs when you create a bird friendly garden and environment, is that you are at least helping the birds to survive as their natural habitats are gradually destroyed. And, you may even be helping to save some species.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/bird-watching-articles/how-to-protect-the-birds-in-your-garden-2735269.html
About the Author
For more information bird feeding station, window bird feeder, and other bird related articles, please visit our web site.
When your design a bird friendly garden, protecting them from predators or interlopers, is one of the most important things to consider.
For instance, quite a few bird lovers love to put up bird feeders and feeding stations in their back yards and gardens to attract their bird friends. Unfortunately, however, squirrels have an almost unmatched fondness for these same kinds of foods.
Because of this, even if your garden has plenty of food, many birds find themselves competing with squirrels for access to these feeding stations. And, homeowners become frustrated as well as their intention is to feed the birds, not the squirrels.
As luck would have it, the free market has taken note of this piece of information, and as a consequence, a multi-million dollar business has developed around the design and production of squirrel proof feeders. These are great for the homeowner in that it saves them money by them not having to replenish the feeding stations as much. And, it saves them aggravation. And the birds love not having to put up with the antics of squirrels as well.
But, in the U.S., the real danger to birds and their families who set up lodging in your back yard, is cats. Particularly, in the city where many stray cats roam free from garden to garden. Cats can be such cute animals, and they have lived with us for centuries. But, they are responsible for killing millions of birds every year and are one of the birds biggest predators.
There is no way that you can protect the birds 100% of the time. But, there are ways to at least mitigate the amount of damage that they can cause.
You can begin by taking away their camouflage and hiding spaces. By nature, cats are among the stealthiest of predators. Primarily, they love to hunt by taking shelter behind bushes or trees and slowly and stealthily sneaking up on their prey until they are close enough to pounce and make the kill. When you take away their hiding areas, they can no longer sneak up on the birds.
Therefore, place the feeders away from the bushes and trees. Also, move them to regions where the birds can easily locate a cat or other predator that tries to sneak by.
Mammals are not the only predators that birds have. The smaller birds have to watch out for bigger birds as well. Unfortunately, there is not much that you can do about that. You just have to accept it as a way of life that sometimes bird predators will kill other birds. It is the way nature intended. And you can no more protect your bird friends from dangers than you can protect the children of your own family.
The best thing, however, that occurs when you create a bird friendly garden and environment, is that you are at least helping the birds to survive as their natural habitats are gradually destroyed. And, you may even be helping to save some species.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/bird-watching-articles/how-to-protect-the-birds-in-your-garden-2735269.html
About the Author
For more information bird feeding station, window bird feeder, and other bird related articles, please visit our web site.
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