Part 3

1. Depth of water should be graduated from nothing at the edge of bath or pool to not more than 2½ inches at its deepest; except that in the case of the larger ground pools it may be graduated up to 5 inches.

2. The bath must be swept or sponged out daily or as often as it becomes much befouled.

3. Inside of bath should be rough to allow the birds a sure foothold.

4. If the bath is on or near the ground, no shrubbery or other possible concealment for cats should be within 25 feet of it. It is well also to have a branchy tree within a few yards of the bath or pool, so that the bathers when alarmed, may easily reach a place of safety, for their wet plumage will prove a handicap in longer flights.

A--WOODEN PEG, HOLDING FOOD TRAY PIVOT (SECTION OF WATER-PIPE) B--FOOD TRAY C--CLEAT, SUPPORTING FOOD TRAY D--ROUND PERCH (ONE AT EACH END), SERVING TO HOLD ROOF BOARDS APART E--ROUND POST

Food Stations

Food is the chief problem of winter birds. Cold alone is scarcely a menace, while snow and sleet are chiefly harmful only when they cover up the food. Given proper food, the only real requirement for a feeding station from the birds' point of view is that it shall keep the food available, as by providing a roof to shed snow and ice. Among the wide variety of birds which frequently patronize food stations, various members of the sparrow and finch family, which includes the grosbeaks, juncos, and crossbills, vie with nuthatches, chickadees, woodpeckers, and blue jays as the most dependable boarders.

For winter birds in the northern states, it is well to have the station in place and stocked with food as early as the first of November. These birds are then beginning to establish hunting grounds and routes, from which they will not stray all winter. Earlier in the fall, as again in spring, ground feeding is the better method. In this, scatter the food (millet, hemp seed, and so on) in the back yard, along the fence line or at the edge of shrubbery or thicket. Juncos, Towhees, Song, Fox, and Tree Sparrows, and many others will benefit. Eagerly devoured by the waxwings are dried currants and dried raisins. Nearly all birds are fond of suet. Tie sizable chunks of suet to trees and to posts of food stations; this appeals especially to woodpeckers, nuthatches, and chickadees. Other standard foods are millet, hemp seed, sunflower seed, cracked corn, and bread crumbs. In addition, chaff and oats may be scattered on the ground for quail, grouse, pheasants, Horned Larks, Snow Buntings, longspurs, and others in localities wild enough for these birds. Such feeding is particularly desirable when the snow is covered by an icy crust. The food may be scattered under brush shelters, made of branchy tree limbs loosely and irregularly stacked and roughly thatched with pine, fir, spruce, or other conifer to keep out excess snow.

The care of a food station consists mostly in keeping up a supply of the proper foods and cleaning out the food trays as often as the condition suggests. A small separate tray of coarse sand will provide the grit many birds require. A hopper arrangement for feeding grains aids in keeping the food supply clean and it helps prevent the scattering of seeds.

_Our publications include many useful manuals concerning birds and other wildlife. A descriptive list will be mailed upon request._

Cranbrook Institute of Science BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MICHIGAN

Transcriber's Notes

--Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.

--Corrected a few palpable typos.

--Included a transcription of the text within some images.

--In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by _underscores_.