Backyard Birdscaping

Take advantage of a sweet season.

Birds are in trouble. North America has lost over 3 billion birds in the last 50 years.

In researching her “State of New Hampshire’s Birds” report, Pamela Hunt—avian conservation biologist at New Hampshire Audubon—found that of the 278 bird species found in New Hampshire, 108 are in decline. While the number of birds of prey, waterfowl and gamebirds have remained stable or increased, some of our backyard favorites— such as the grosbeaks, thrushes, many sparrows and warblers, scarlet tanager, Baltimore oriole, eastern towhee, and even our state bird, the purple finch— are declining fast.

Many factors are at work. Hunt cites habitat loss and degradation, not only here but in the areas these birds migrate to in winter or for breeding. About 190 species breed in New Hampshire, but only between 20 and 30 species—including woodpeckers, chickadees and titmice—live here year-round, not migrating at all. “The farther away birds migrate, the more likely they are to be in decline,” Hunt says. “Climate change is also at play here, causing some species to decline in the state while others—such as northern cardinals— are increasing.

“Birds that need forested habitats are doing better than those which favor open grassland or shrubby habitats, called ‘early successional,’” she says. Examples of early successional habitat are the low shrubs and brambles that come in when fields are not maintained, or the shrubby new growth that emerges after a forest has been logged. When old pastures and unused farmland are developed, birds and other wildlife lose valuable habitat. Lawns and pavement have nothing to offer them.

So, the question at hand: What can be done? Fortunately, there are several ways homeowners can help birds.

Go beyond the birdfeeder

The Environmental and Horticultural Center at Distant Hill Gardens in Walpole manages their shrub gardens to encourage a diversity of species. Shrub gardens are a good example of an early successional habitat that looks beautiful while supplying birds with sources of food and shelter.

“We need to have insects to have birds. Along with plants that supply seeds and berries, we need to have plants that support caterpillars,” Michael Nerrie of Distant Hill Gardens says. Almost all birds feed their babies protein-packed insects and don’t fly far from the nest to find them. Chickadees are a good example. To feed their brood, parents shuttle between 350 and 500 caterpillars to the nest each day for between 16 and 18 days. That’s a lot of bugs just for one nest. “If the number of insects is down, a number of birds won’t survive,” Nerrie explains.

It can be hard for homeowners to invite caterpillars and other insects to their yard. But birds are a gardener’s best friend, and they will eat their fair share of bugs, helping to keep populations in check.

Birds will also eat weed seeds before they have a chance to sprout. Nerrie set up two nesting boxes next to his vegetable garden—one for wrens and one for tree swallows. “It has become a feeding station for the baby birds, and the insect damage in the garden is much lower than normal,” he says.

Making bird-friendly choices

Trees and shrubs form the backbone of any landscape, and are necessary to provide birds with food, shelter and places to nest. We often are enticed into planting exotic plants in our gardens; because native insects have not evolved with the exotic plants, insects don’t recognize these as food sources. As a result, your plants may look pristine—they aren’t being chewed up. However, they aren’t helping birds survive. Instead, assess the plants you have, and when adding new ones, look for native species. Eco-conscious gardeners are willing to accept a little damage to bolster the overall environment.

“Natives have the most positive attributes in the ecosystem,” Nerrie says. For perennials, look to natives such as rudbeckias, anise hyssop and coneflower. Small birds, such as goldfinches, find their seeds irresistible. Native perennials also draw in native pollinators and butterflies. Boneset and Joe-pye weed host over 40 species of caterpillars and goldenrod over 100. “Generally speaking, the seeds that perennials produce are an excellent food source for native sparrows, mourning doves, northern cardinals, black-capped chickadees, nuthatches and tufted titmice. Flowering perennials that produce nectar are favored by hummingbirds, which are a popular guest that many gardeners like to attract,” says Steven Lamonde, ecologist and affiliate professor at Antioch University New England in Keene and self-proclaimed “bird nerd.”

For a list of native perennials specific to your area and the birds they attract, Lamonde recommends the National Audubon Society’s Native Plant Database at audubon.org/native-plants. Here you can search for appropriate plants by zip code and sort by type of plant and the resources it provides.

Still, Nerrie is not averse to growing a non-native plant if it is being used by wildlife in a helpful way. For example, neither the lilac nor the apple tree is native. However, lilacs host between 30 and 40 species of caterpillars. Also, “apples are a great draw for a lot of birds,” Nerrie says. “Insects come in for the early blossoms, and the birds will come in for the insects.” He has seen colorful birds—including indigo buntings, bluebirds and scarlet tanagers—on the apple trees, eating insects, blossoms and leftover fruit.

Blueberries, maples, birch and willow each serve as host plants for hundreds of species of caterpillars. “Oaks host over 500 types of butterfly and moth larvae,” Nerrie says. “They also supply acorns, which are an important mast food for many kinds of wildlife.”

Some of his other favorite trees are black cherry and dogwoods. “Some birds are fruit eaters, and they prefer the dark purple berries of pagoda dogwoods and elderberries. The cedar waxwings come in for the mountain ash and will eat crabapples. Pine grosbeaks and bluebirds enjoy the winterberries,” he says.

Lamonde has led several programs at Distant Hills. “Virtually any plant that produces fruit will attract a few key groups of birds—those whose diet consists of significant amounts of fruit,” Lamonde says. “Fall migration and winter are the two seasons I think of when more birds are eating fruit for two reasons. First, more fruit is available due to the lifecycle of many plants, and second, birds are storing extra calories to fuel their migratory journeys or build up fat reserves for the winter.”

This time of year, there are bargains to be had at many garden centers. If you find container-grown native plants that have been well taken care of, by all means scoop them up. “Fall is a great time to plant,” Nerrie says. “The ground is warmer than in spring and wetter than it is in summer, and you don’t have hot weather to deal with.” Spring is the best time for planting bare root trees and shrubs. Nerrie recommends ordering them this winter from Fedco for early spring delivery.

Create shelter

Evergreens are an important part of your backyard birdscape. “Arborvitae is a great one,” Nerrie says. “Mourning doves often sleep there.” Pines host over 200 species of caterpillars, and provide seeds, winter cover and nesting sites for songbirds. Pine siskins and chickadees eat the seeds of eastern hemlock, and several species of warblers nest there, too. Spruce trees host 150 species of butterfly and moth larvae, and birds also eat spruce budworm. Evergreens can also serve as a windbreak near a feeding station or birdbath.

And speaking of birdbaths, don’t forget that water is a critical need for birds year-round. “I love having a water feature,” Nerrie says. “You will often get more birds than if you put out a feeder.” Moving water attracts birds, he says, so consider adding a recirculating pump to your birdbath or garden pond. “Between 1 and 2 inches of water is enough for them to bathe in,” Nerrie says. “They will often sit in a nearby tree to preen after bathing.”

More can be done

In addition to beefing up your garden with bird-friendly trees, shrubs and plants, there are a few more things you can do to help the dwindling bird population. Hunt says it is vital to keep your cat indoors. Cats kill billions of birds every year. Also, adding strips of translucent tape to large windowpanes breaks up the reflection of the sky and can help reduce collisions. Another option Hunt recommends is leaving screens on all year. She also reminds us to maintain our yards in a sustainable way: Stop using pesticides and other chemicals in your yard that can poison birds.

Small steps—such as reducing the amount of lawn by widening existing flower beds, adding a shrub border on the edge of your property or planting a few native specimen trees—will help provide birds with the things they need to survive: food, shelter, nest sites and cover. NHH

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Suggested Fruiting Plants

Steven Lamonde provides this list of native fruiting plants and the birds they attract:

• Serviceberries (Amelanchier spp.) attract orioles, thrushes, wrens, waxwings, warblers, black-capped chickadee, sparrows and vireos.

• Dogwoods (Cornus spp.) attract waxwings, warblers, vireos, northern cardinal, grosbeaks, thrushes, orioles and blue jays.

• Black chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa) attracts blue jays, vireos, thrushes, orioles, warblers and waxwings.

• Black raspberries (Rubus occidentalis) attract sparrows, mockingbirds, thrushes, waxwings, northern cardinal, blue jay, orioles, vireos and wrens.

• Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) attracts grosbeaks, mockingbirds, nuthatches, thrushes, orioles, warblers and waxwings.

• Common winterberry (Ilex verticillata) attracts thrushes, northern cardinal, grosbeaks, waxwings, warblers, mockingbirds and orioles.

• Blueberries (Vaccinium spp.) attract waxwings, warblers, vireos, chickadees, sparrows and thrushes.

• Viburnums (Viburnum spp.) attract warblers, sparrows, mockingbirds, catbirds, thrushes and northern cardinal.

• Red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) attracts hummingbirds (for nectar), mockingbirds, wrens, thrushes, orioles, waxwings and vireos.

• Sumacs (Rhus spp.) attract thrushes, waxwings, gray catbird and black-capped chickadee.

• Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) attracts mockingbirds, vireos, grosbeaks, warblers, orioles, waxwings, blue jays and thrushes.

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RESOURCES

Distant Hill Gardens • (603) 756-4179
distanthillgardens.org

Fedco Trees • (207) 426-9900
fedcoseeds.com/trees

NH Audubon • (603) 224-9909 • nhaudubon.org