[Illustration: Plate VI. For the House Finch, Robin, and Phoebe
1 and 2, Nest box for House Finch. The front is left entirely open, except for a cleat to hold the nest in place. Drainage holes may be bored in the bottom of the cleat, or the cleat may be raised a quarter of an inch above the floor level. 3, Nesting shelves for Robin and Phoebe. See text for directions. The raised rim shown here is not always essential, but it may aid the birds to get a start, since high winds are inclined to blow away the first straws from exposed sites.]
The accompanying illustrations will fully explain themselves. However, it is well to emphasize here that the simplest possible shelf, if only a mere cleat, is all that is really required—5 to 6 inches wide for the Robin, 3½ to 4½ inches wide for the Phoebe; any length of 8 inches or over for either bird.
The Robin often nests more than 25 feet up, the Phoebe seldom so high. Place the Phoebe’s shelf 8 to 20 feet up, the Robin’s 8 to 30 feet. Should the locality be in the country, one must chance a Phoebe claiming a shelf intended for Robins; either species should prove desirable as a tenant. Certainly cultivators of cherries, currants, and other small fruits may well console themselves should Phoebes become their uninvited guests! The Phoebe is a true flycatcher and has none of the Robin’s special fondness for garden fruits.
[Illustration: Figure 4. A roofed nesting-shelf for Robins and Phoebes. Length may be 8, or any multiple of 8, inches. Several ¼- or ⅜-inch holes may be bored through the floor for drainage, instead of in the rim as shown here.]
1, Natural boulder bath; 2, natural flat stone bath; 3, cement bath on a stone foundation; 4, a ground-pool bath of cement with a border of small boulders.]
Birds are inveterate bathers. Bathing is the daily habit of Robins, Catbirds, goldfinches, Song Sparrows, and most other small species, whenever facilities are available. Artificial baths are most important where other bathing places are distant or inadequate. In times of drought, birds will resort so eagerly to baths as to form an almost continuous daily procession.
The bird bath lends itself to endless variations in size, shape, style, material, and cost. Often one may find a large boulder which, at the expense of moving to the desired spot, will prove a ready-made bath if it has a shallowly concave side. Or such a water basin may be chipped out of a rock by a stone mason. Smaller stones, flattened and more or less scooped, are common along many streams. One of these stone slabs, mounted on a pile of supporting stones, makes an excellent bath. Failing that or as a matter of taste, a massive shallow basin may be cast in cement to take the place of the natural slab. A pool may be provided by lining with cement and surrounding with stones a prepared spot in lawn or garden. See illustrations. If desired, running water may be piped to any style of bath. Whatever type the bath may be, the following rules strictly apply.