Love, War, and Water: Summer in the Backyard
by Julie Amato
One gray morning in early June, I stepped out our front door, only to startle a bird that flew awkwardly into the dark foliage of a tree. Although I couldn’t see whom I’d inadvertently frightened, I noticed something unusual - a California Towhee standing erect on the edge of our roof, scanning the area. What was it up to?
A California Towhee parent on our roof, guarding its young
I retreated inside so the birds would feel comfortable again, and was rewarded when a young fluffball of a towhee emerged from the tree and started foraging on the ground, watched by the bird on the roof - aha, its parent! The parent continued its vigilance, standing guard over the baby, changing locations as its young one explored the area, always remaining at a high vantage point and on high alert. The parent’s focus and intensity suggested a fierce desire to protect the young bird, and I was moved.
A California Towhee youngster on our back fence
A little later in the morning, I saw that the two birds had moved to our backyard. They foraged together on the ground, the parent frequently stopping to feed the baby. The parent seemed to be teaching the young one by example - do what I’m doing, its behavior suggested, and you’ll find food and be fine. Within a few days, the baby was foraging on its own. They sure do grow up fast!
A California Towhee parent feeds its young as the two of them forage together in our yard
The California Towhees have made other headlines in our local news this month. In contrast to the sweet parent-child interactions I’ve observed, a mated pair of towhees have made our yard their exclusive turf, chasing away other towhees, squealing and squawking, even engaging in foot-to-foot combat (I wish I had pictures to show you, but I haven’t been able to capture one of these sudden, explosive moments yet). One day, I watched a towhee chasing another one around the yard. Eventually, the two birds stopped and faced one another, then flew straight up in the air, flailing their talons at each other.
Although I didn’t think the birds had struck one another, in recent days, I have noticed some scruffy-looking towhees in the yard - one with a yanked-out tuft of feathers on its nape, another with what looked like a small wound on its cheek. California Towhees are known to attack interlopers when defending their territories, sometimes causing injury and drawing blood. It is said that they are particularly aggressive during the breeding season, and the daily drama I’ve been seeing in my yard bears testimony to this thought.
Two young American Crows, perhaps siblings. Their pale eyes and the red color of their gapes, where the bill meets the face, mark them as young.
Our neighborhood American Crows have also put on quite a show for us in the past month, but all in an endearing way. One family shows up in our yard every day, babies in tow - or perhaps I should say babies in hot pursuit, since the young follow the adults around closely. If you are used to the crisp staccato “caw-caw-caw” of adult crows, you won’t have any difficulty telling the babies from them: the young produce a loud, rapid, high-pitched wail, urgent like toddlers crying for attention, which is pretty much who they are and what they are doing.
Young crows are charismatically goofy!
Crow parents seem to deploy the same “learn by example” strategy as the towhees do for teaching their young how to forage, largely ignoring the juveniles’ begging behavior, but don’t be fooled - they are still keeping a sharp eye on their young ones.
I discovered this one day when three crows - two adults and one youngster - flew onto our backyard fence. The two adults dropped into our yard to forage while the young bird remained on the fence (so to speak). After a few seconds, instead of following the adults into our yard, the baby surprised all of us by hopping into the neighbors’ yard instead. Immediately, the adults flew up to the fence to keep an eye on it, and a third adult appeared seemingly from nowhere and perched on an overhead wire, also keeping an eye on the young bird. The baby eventually flew back up to the fence, the adults descended again to our yard, and this time, the youngster followed them. Just like human parents, crows apparently have that third eye, watching out for their kids even when their attention seems to be elsewhere.
Crows are also a delight to observe because they are so obviously playful. I have gotten great pleasure over the past month watching the young ones splash around in our bird bath, having a grand old time. They clearly love the water, dredging their bodies in the shallow bath, spraying water everywhere, and fighting with each other over who is king of the mountain. The end result is that everyone eventually gets a turn, but the fun seems to be much enhanced by the drama.
Here’s a photo series that I captured of one of these moments.
“This is nice!”
“Hey, I was here first!”
“Go away, this is MY bath!”
“I don’t care what you say, it’s my turn!”
“I’m going to shout at you until you go away!” (“Go ahead, I’ll wait you out!”)
“That’s better!” (This might actually be a third bird, but you get the idea!)
Keep an eye on your yard this summer, and you’re sure to see your own share of devoted parents, fighting rivals, and playful young!
How to provide water to birds
As we head into the hot summer months, please consider putting out water for the birds.
High temperatures are difficult for birds, just as they are for us. Birds will drink the water you provide and bathe in it to cool themselves. Birds also bathe as a way to freshen and maintain their feathers. You don’t need to provide food - water alone is a big attraction - and as an added bonus, you’ll get to enjoy some of the fun I described above!
Here are some tips for providing water for birds:
Pick a suitable container (it doesn’t need to be fancy) - You can purchase a bird bath if you’d like, but you don’t need to. A shallow, wide receptacle, no more than 2” deep, with a flat or gently-sloped basin, will work. Birds should be able to easily perch on the edges. The basin should be relatively non-porous so it can be easily cleaned. Avoid materials or finishes that could leach into the water.
I use a large plant saucer because I noticed birds drinking the overflow water from my potted plants. The saucer has a thick rim and gently sloping sides, which the birds seem to like. I don’t recommend using metal containers in the summer - they can get very hot.
Put the bath in a cool, safe place - While many pedestal bird baths elevate the water basin several feet above the ground, you can also place your bath on or close to the ground (which is where water naturally pools), as long as there are no cats or other hazards in the area. Pick a safe spot that gets at least partial shade - a bath in the full summer sun gets hot.
Make sure the water isn’t too deep - Birds don’t want to venture into water that is too deep for their comfort. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the optimal depth of a bath ranges from ½” to 1” at the edges to no more than 2” in the middle; the National Audubon Society recommends a depth not exceeding 1 ½”.
The water in my bath is ½” to ¾” deep and attracts both small and large birds. I recommend keeping it shallow, for the safety of the smaller birds.
Add perches for the birds - Small flat rocks that protrude above the surface of the water provide additional perches for the birds, and I suspect also help them gauge the water depth.
Change the water daily - Over the course of each day, the water will get dirty. Birds will defecate in it, and stray feathers and other debris will end up in it, increasing the possibility of disease transmission. Dump out and refill the bath with fresh water every day.
Clean the bath regularly - Bird baths should be cleaned at least two or three times a week, to reduce disease organisms that may be present. Dispose of any water that is in the basin, then scrub the bath thoroughly with a weak vinegar solution (9 parts water to 1 part vinegar). Scrub any objects that you’ve placed in the bath, like rocks, as well. Rinse everything thoroughly and allow to dry before refilling the bath. Avoid synthetic soaps or cleaning products - their residue can take the oils out of bathing birds’ feathers.
I choose to clean my bath every evening, allowing it to air dry overnight, then fill it with fresh water in the morning. It’s quick and simple, and putting out a clean bath each morning is a pleasurable routine.
Mourning Dove enjoying a long soak in our bird bath
References
Attract birds with birdbaths - The Cornell Lab of Ornithology
How to make a birdbath - National Audubon Society
Why you should keep your birdbath clean - National Audubon Society
Birds of the World: S. M. Billerman, B. K. Keeney, P. G. Rodewald, and T. S. Schulenberg, Editors. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/home
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology Handbook of Bird Biology, third edition: Irby J. Lovette and John W. Fitzpatrick, Editors. Published by John Wiley & Sons, 2016.
Credits
All photos in article by Julie Amato
Banner Photo: Mourning Doves by Julie Amato