The birds that remain in this area during the summer are nesting and raising families. While there is plenty of natural food to keep them well fed, they will appreciate a quick meal at the feeder to take back and feed to their hungry and demanding offspring. Later, when the chicks are ready to leave the nest, the parents will take them around and teach them how to survive and where to find food, and the feeder is one of the places they will bring them, offering an opportunity to see them up close. Young cardinals are always good for a chuckle, looking not quite finished, with fluffy down sticking out from beneath their new feathers.

Most of the birds that spend the summer in this area will never come to the feeder. Their diet consists of insects, worms and berries; they don’t eat seeds. What they do need – what all birds need – is water. Providing a source of water will attract many different types of birds that might not ordinarily come near your home.

Water can be made available using a traditional birdbath – either the common pedestal type or one designed to sit on the ground – and it will soon be used for both drinking and bathing. The water in a birdbath is still; it doesn’t move or make noise. What really attracts birds is water that moves and has a sound to it. Building a brook or a waterfall in the back yard is not practical for everyone, but there are options that are less expensive and easy to implement.

A dripper is a device that is designed to hang over a birdbath and deliver a drop of water every so often from a height of 10 or 12 inches, making a splashing sound and causing ripples to spread across the water. They come in a variety of styles, sitting in the birdbath or attaching to the side of it, or standing alongside. The water source can be a garden hose or underground plumbing, and the amount of water used is only a gallon or so, which replaces what is lost to evaporation.

Misters also attach to an outdoor faucet and produce a fine spray of water that small birds love to fly through. Hummingbirds find them irresistible. To save water, a timer can be attached to regulate the flow, turning it on for 2-3 minutes at fifteen or twenty minute intervals.

Waterfall rocks can be placed in the birdbath to create a cascading effect of running water. There is a small pump inside the rock that requires electric power. The combination of sound and rippling water makes these devices very effective at attracting birds.