Mar 21, 2018 | Featured in: Watching Backyard Birds, April 2018

Strange—But Useful—Ways to Help Birds This Spring

Have you ever tried feeding eggshells to birds? Females especially need them during nesting season to replenish the calcium needed to produce eggs.
Share:

Eggshells for the Birds

Save your eggshells and offer them to the birds. Female birds need calcium—especially during egg-laying season. When cooking, save the empty, rinsed-out egg shells in the refrigerator in a jar or plastic container. After you've accumulated a dozen or so, bake them on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees for half an hour to kill any residual bacteria. When the shells have cooled, crush them into small bits and offer them to the birds on a platform feeder; toss them on a roof; or scatter them on a deck railing or sidewalk.

Leave a Log

The combination of wood, water, and soil creates gold for the birds, in the form of invertebrates attracted to the decaying wood. Leave a log on a bare spot in the corner of your yard. You'll create a nursery for the kinds of critters lots of birds prefer to feed their nestlings and fledglings.

Did you know that Watching Backyard Birds is the only magazine in North America devoted entirely to backyard birds? Subscribe today and receive a heaping helping of backyard content year-round! »



What do you think? Tell us!

comments powered by Disqus

New On This Site

The Latest Comments

  • Re: Sapsucker Facts » Watching Backyard Birds.com
    New to birding...newbie question. We spotted what we thought was a Sapsucker at our patio feeders in December. The folks at our birding supply store told us that Sapsuckers are only here in Summer months and what we saw was a Flicker. I thought I new what a Flicker was and this did not look like a Flicker. It was thinner and more smooth looking but did have the Woodpecker Bill.
    by Edmund Steinman, Wed, 08 Jan 2020
  • Re: Sapsucker Facts » Watching Backyard Birds.com
    We just signed up and get your magazine via email. Will we be receiving a printed copy?Ed [email protected]
    by Edmund Steinman, Wed, 08 Jan 2020
  • Re: Chickadee Memories » Watching Backyard Birds.com
    Chickadees are adorable and intelligent. Chickadees have brains that are the most like human brains. Chickadees are personable, lively, and have their own language. Chickadees form lasting pair bonds; and are very good parents. Love.
    by Merl Elton, Tue, 24 Dec 2019
  • Re: 8 Common Bird-feeding Myths Debunked » Watching Backyard Birds.com
    I'm still worried about my backyard birds even though myth #3 says they won't starve if I stop feeding in the middle of winter. I'm concerned because I'm moving in a couple of weeks to a new house and the winter's in northern Ohio get pretty challenging. Should I start backing off slowly on there food or just stop when we move?
    by Vince Bove, Sat, 14 Dec 2019
  • Re: How do Birds Keep Warm in Cold Winter Weather?
    Birds make our world a wonderful and beautiful place to live.
    by Mac Eco, Mon, 09 Dec 2019