Birds attracted to ponds.... (1 Viewer)

[Katherine]

Am thinking of having a garden pond in my garden to attract some more bird species. What birds do ponds usually attract, and what should I plant in it and around it to maximise attracted species?

 

[halftwo]

Katherine,
How big Katherine?
Ponds are great wildlife attractors - especially essential for insects & amphibians which in turn are good for birds.
Unless you can have a big one - big enough for Moorhens, say, not many birds will live on/by it. In any case I would go for a range of aquatics & semi-aquatics & keep them native. (Marsh marigolds are one of my favourites)
Dragonflies & damselflies (as well as many other insects) will use surprisingly small ponds & emergent plants will be of benefit to them.
Avoid fish! Except for sticklebacks & minnows they will deplete insect larvae almost entirely, and you will only attract herons. A big pond with minnows might attract Kingfishers if you have them locally.
Birds like to bathe & drink in shallow areas - steep sides are not good. But some deeper water is good for frogs & toads & will keep the pond from freezing completely.
Part shade & sun are better than one or the other.
When you fill it add a few buckets of pond water from a local source - it will be full of life which will quickly multiply & colonise the pond. Spawn can be collected in early spring - but only if the pond is partly established by then - otherwise they'll starve. Flying aquatic insects like water beetles will find it quickly - they see/sense its presence from some distance.
A log pile or the like near it will be good for hibernating amphibians & if the whole thing isn't enclosed by nearby shrubs this will prevent cats from ambushing the birds which come down to drink & bathe.
There's nothing wrong with a small electric heater in winter to keep a small part unfrozen.
Halftwo

 

[Mike Feely]

Hi Katherine

I'm in the middle of planning a small wildlife pond myself, the following link has lots of tips:

http://www.wildlife-gardening.org.u...rse&ftr=Features\Projects\Ponds\9 newpond.xml

The rest of that website also has loads of ideas on how to make any garden more wildlife friendly without spending heaps of cash.

Good luck!

Mike

 

[Mike Richardson]

Hi Katherine

My parents live in a house on the edge of the town surrounded by fields. They have a large garden and have resident Tree Sparrows, Barn and Tawny owls etc. Recently I helped my Dad build a small pond with a long waterfall/ rapids section that has running water all the time. I was amazed how this small pond increased not only the number of individual birds to the garden, but also some new species. I myself have seen Blackcap and Goldcrest bathing in the rapids, aswell as the more common species. One afternoon I was sat watching the pond and was amazed to see a Gray Wagtail paying a visit.
The point I'm trying to make is a small pond can make a positive difference to any garden, even areas already rich in wildlife.

Good luck with your pond

 

[luke]

if you plant loads of reeds in it you might get bitterns?? only joking, ponds are great for birds, i love watching birds cleaning them self, can be really funny sometimes.

 

[tommybrent]

Tip for the winter, float a tennis ball on the pond to prevent it freezing over, this will help what lies beneath.

 

[Merman]

the only bird i have ever seen in my garden specifically attracted by the pond is a grey wagtail. ive only seen it once, in 20 years. so, pretty rare for my garden.

i think it depends on how big your gonna make the pond and what you put in it. mine is a wildlife pond, and i leave it to its own devices. my next door neighbour has a bigger pond and has big goldfish in it. he has had a heron visit, but it wasnt welcome.

 

[Tranquility Base]

I'm not sure about the 'no fish' advice! My pond has Golden Orfe, Tench and Rudd in it (It's only small: 12' x 6' x 3' deep) but it's full of other wildlife: frogs, smooth newts, dragonflies, pond skaters: and often Grass Snakes. It attracts birds all year to bathe and drink: over 30 species so far. It's by a fence and has high horsetails around it on three sides, so the Herons just seem to look down from the roof!
(I just tried to send up a couple of photos, but the BF server is having a funny five minutes! I'll try later!)