I want to hang a new birdhouse in my yard (Minnesota, urban). Should I add nesting materials to the house?
Cornell Lab of Ornitology suggests providing a variety of nesting material for the bird to pick from, but do not put it in the birdhouse – birds like to arrange their own nests. “Ideally you should provide nest material naturally by leaving or creating wild, natural areas on your property (perhaps hidden from your neighbor’s view) where plants can grow into thickets, and leaves and twigs can fall and not be raked up immediately. This untidy debris gives a variety of material for the birds to pick through when they are building nests. They may even pick through your compost pile looking for suitable nest material. Alternatively, you can put out concentrated stashes of nest material. It can be natural materials like straw, small sticks, and twigs, or manmade materials such as yarn and string. Try putting out any combination of the following: Dead twigs Dead leaves Dry grass Yarn or string—cut into 4- to 8-inch pieces Human or animal hair (especially horse hair) Fur (e.g. dog or cat fur)
