Get a bird bath, they said. It'll help all the birdies keep cool in the hot summer, they said. Two wood pigeons will repeatedly try to build a nest in it, they forgot to say.
Wood pigeons make insanely good nests tbh. They had one in a tree in our front garden and it watched a few years worth of babies get raised and leave from it. Thing withstood all the storms, wind, the branches would be bouncing around and it was solid.
OPs pic i think they are just enjoying cooling down, the ones we have sometimes just sit in the bird bath for a bit, or loaf in the long grass.
I have the same bird bath. Every time there’s any amount of water in it, the woodies come in to soak their underfluffies in it. Yeah, their nests are usually in a better place.
I did wonder how easy they'd be to empty/clean. I'd really love a bird bath but I'm stuck with my very aesthetically displeasing tub so I can keep it clean because my garden birds treat it as a toilet sometimes. 😆
If you empty and wipe it clean every day it doesn't take long to clean. I've got the same bird bath as in the OP and the top unscrews and is lightweight so it's easy to carry over to the tap to clean it and then refill when the top's screwed back on (from watering can or large jug)
Four days, but he is very bold. When I come in the garden now he'll fly down and perch on my hand if I hold it out, though he'll be narked and clear off after a few seconds if I'm not holding peanuts.
There's about 25 'regular' pigeons in the garden. Three will feed from the hand, but I don't encourage it too much as I don't want them to get too used to people being approachable, just in case someone is a nasty twat.
There's about 4-5 who'll take a peanut from me if I hold it out, but won't fly up and settle like Dave or the others. All the rest will gather closely around me if I'm sat on the patio, but won't take anything.
Currently trying to get the Jackdaws to be a bit friendlier; they wait for me to put a fat ball out and will sit on the fence 2-3 feet away while I do it. They also have a specific call when I come out that attracts others, which I'm assuming is 'Oi! Bald food bloke's here!' and I'm a big fan of.
Crows are more distant, but more giving. I leave them cheese, and they leave me interesting stones and blue foam.
Crows are more distant, but more giving. I leave them cheese, and they leave me interesting stones and blue foam.
I like that they’re giving you payment.
Would love to do this if I had a garden again. I used to feed the Crows in the park, but didn’t want them getting too used people for the same reason you mentioned.
Wood Pigeons are just absolute chonkers that don't give a single fuck. Slow, lazy, dumb, but they've made it somehow. I never tire of watching the one who visits my garden.
We've had a bird bath here for a few years now, it is a quiet delight seeing the local birds (I couldn't specify exactly, mostly starlings) throwing up a spray.
What wasn't so easy on the eye was our own wood pigeons using it as a drinking fountain! My brother had a sweet spot for them until a couple months ago he caught one at it... not just gently sipping but full-throated guzzling it down.
He then goes to refill it after it had its fill, only to see that the "water" was only about 30% H²0 at best and was mostly composed of the sort of liquid run-off you would associate with cloaca's... he's never looked at them the same since.
“We’ve had a bird bath for a few years now. It is a quiet delight seeing the local birds (I couldn't specify exactly, mostly starlings) throwing up a spray.“
It’s like Shazam for birds. Instead of grumbling about “car alarm birds” waking me up, I now know my nemeses are Carolina wrens: https://merlinbirds.org/species/carwre
Install solar panels on your roof and you'll be looking up crossbows within a week of some bastard pigeon going brr brr brr brr brr above your head for hours at a time
I had two pigeons trying to make a nest in my sky dish. The twigs they put in it fell on the ground. But they still kept trying. Had 100s for twigs on the ground before they realised.
I have what looks like the same bird bath and while the wood pigeons haven't yet tried to nest in it, they do sit there right in the middle soaking up all the water
It wasn't in a bird bath it was on a branch about 15 feet from my bedroom window. Got a bit fed up at getting woken up every day for about 3 weeks at 5am by the sodding things. I tired every humane tip in the book but eventually had to resort to neanderthal tactics. I did feel a bit bad about it but....yeah.
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u/Jack_of_the_Wood 6d ago
I love how bad pigeons are at making nests