Crafts for Critters - Birdy Builds
Birds might not know it, but they have some pretty great neighbors! On October 3rd, we gathered at Chelsea Green to show just how easy it can be to lend our feathered friends a helping hand. With a few everyday materials, the Chelsea community learned about how simple projects can make a big difference in an urban bird’s life.
Here were the three activities we worked on and learned all about:
Window Stickers
Image by Critters in Crisis
Birds get seriously injured after window collisions, a majority of which are unfortunately fatal. Audubon reports that building collisions may kill well over one billion birds in the United States each year. Glass reflections and artificial lighting make windows especially hazardous, putting wild birds in constant danger of colliding with New York City’s many glass-covered skyscrapers. Researchers and advocates recommend bird-safe glass, reduced nighttime lighting, and stronger building regulations to prevent collisions, but the easiest and fastest way we can do this at home is to make DIY window stickers!
At our event, we encouraged kids to use their creative artistic skills and inspiration from the fall season to create a window marker. This simple activity can help birds tremendously if you scatter these artworks on your biggest windows to mark and stand out to steer birds clear!
Image by Critters in Crisis
Nesting Holders
Typically in the early spring do birds start making their nests, scavenging for small twigs or parts of shrubs and plants. But there comes a risk with urban birds.
Birds increasingly use human-made trash, including plastic, fishing line, and cigarette butts, to build their nests. This poses a threat as such materials can entangle or even poison birds and their chicks, according to a recent Phys.org article on urban birds and nesting materials.
There are initiatives that are alleviating this limitation of natural & safe materials by providing greater access of natural materials to bids. One creative example comes from Melbourne, Australia, where artist and researcher Bethany Kiss created Peckable Architecture which are biodegradable “bricks” made from nesting materials that birds can collect as the structure breaks down.
Image from Hobby Farms
Making these bricks at home is certainly possible; however, there is another quick way to provide birds with safe materials to keep their nests warm and insulated: use a nesting material holder! These holders are thin, hanging cages filled with natural materials you collect that birds can take and use to build their nests.
For people with a furry pet, this is the best way to give your pet’s fresh shed a second life!
For people without one, you can collect other materials like wigs, moss, dried grass, raw cotton, and more!
You can find cages on Etsy, or you can make your own with chicken wire, or get creative with things at home…like a whisk!
Tutorials for a DIY nesting holder can be found anywhere online, but my favorite tutorial is this YouTube video created by Kathy Allen.
TP Bird Feeder
In a busy city like New York, birds can have limited access to natural food sources and safe places to rest. Creating a DIY bird feeder can be a great way to help out!
To make a simple and affordable bird feeder at home, the easiest materials you can use are your finished rolls of toilet paper and string!
Follow this easy tutorial by Vintage Farm Lady.
At our event, we worked together and created a small feeder for the park!
Photos by Critters in Crisis
