Bird Lovers

 Have heard it said that when all the birds disappear, the world is in trouble. It certainly wouldn't be the same place without their songs, seeing their flight and wondering at their beauty and endurance. In our present hot weather, a bird bath is for them, a boon. It's place where birds can, and do, drink and cool off. The butterflies and bees as well as many other insects appreciate the water, too. The inspite of their tiny size, do much to the health of our environment in each of their unique ways. We need to find a way to live with them, all of them and like all living creatures, they need water. But bird bath water can also beome a problem. I have one on my sun deck and keeping it clean can be an effort. During the winter, I left it as is, but added water every day. The added stones around the edges began to take on an unpleasant smell and when I peered into the water one day, I saw a little white worm with a long tail. Ugh. The thing is called a Rat Tailed Maggot and these creatures can cause serious illnesses in birds. Naturally birds will eat worms and other insects but these are not what you want your bird friends to encounter. The solution is first to thoroughly clean your bird bath by scrubbing with some vingar water. Be careful where, if you have maggots in the water, to dump them in a place where they will never return and not near buildings please. Birds must not eat these worms, and since rarely, they can infect humans and other animals with a salmonella-like effect, do get rid of them.  You can go  online for further information. Once the bird bath is clean, you should daily fill with fresh water and add a capful of vinegar: one to one gallon of water. I use apple cider vinegar. It actually helps birds who don't mind vinegar a bit and it adds mineral to their diet. The secret is cleanliness. I tossed out all of the rocks I had in the bird bath because sometimes the crows and other larger birds will come with their food and dip it into the water. The bits of decaying food can  become lodged under added features such as decorations and rocks.  I learned much from reading about the life that your water generates and not all of it is good. Maggots are not safe. Those with ponds will have other matters to learn about keeping good ponds that are really just large bird baths. There is nothing like, for those of us who live in condo style homes, sitting on our decks beside our bird baths and listening to birds in a morning and seeing them soar and wheel  and flit in the sky. No matter how humble your deck or window seat or back yard, birds are a gift that is free and great entertainment to watch.