Attract Beautiful Birds To Your Yard With This Simple Alternative Birdbath

There are a variety of simple hacks to get birds to flock to your yard, and just about all of them involve food, shelter, or water. A traditional pedestal-style birdbath is one way to bring in the birds, but it's not the only way. It's a lot more fun and creative to craft your own alternative birdbath using natural materials such as rocks that are relatively flat. Birds are accustomed to finding water sources out in nature, whether they're in a puddle, a pond, or along the edge of a river. One way to offer the birds water is to make a rock pool, sometimes called a rock basin, as a nature-inspired splash pad that's ideal for drinking, bathing, or just cooling off. 

To really make a splash with your rock pool, keep the water shallow; 2 inches deep at most is the goal. A rock with an area that slopes gradually allows the birds to choose the depth that works best for their needs. Your rock pool doesn't even need to be just one large, flat rock with an impression in it; it can be a number of flat rocks set in a shallow container or even within a plastic pond form to help keep the water from draining into the ground. 

Before building your rock pool, choose a good location for it. If you're going for a ground-level birdbath, keep shrubs at a distance, rather than right up against it, so prowling predators such as cats cannot sneak up on the birds. Your feathered friends will feel safer and more comfortable if there is enough open space for them to see any potential threats ahead of time. Choosing a location in the shade will also keep the water from evaporating or from getting too warm on a hot day. Remember, keeping your birdbath in full sun makes it less desirable to the birds. 

If you're using a single flat rock with a sunken area within it, set it on a level spot of ground so the water pools as it should. Though they're typically on the ground, you could also raise yours up a bit by setting it atop stacked rocks or bricks, or even atop another worthy, stable rock that's more vertical, like a pedestal. To use some basin- or bowl-shaped item as the main pool, cover the bottom with flat rocks of varying heights. This gives the birds a chance to choose a depth that's right for them. They also need traction and tend to avoid smooth, slick surfaces. A natural rock pool provides the texture that would make a birdbath more comfortable for the birds.