Spotting new birds can be exciting for a bird watcher, although it’s not always as exciting for the average homeowner or resident. That’s because birds can be a bit of a nuisance. When they nest or perch on or around your home, they can make quite the mess. Luckily there are a few DIY methods that you can take to help prevent birds from perching.

How to help prevent birds from perching

Consider plastic predators

If you search online for easy ways to keep birds at bay, before long you’ll hit the advice to scatter fake, plastic predators around your yard or near your home. While it may seem silly to have a big plastic owl perched around your home, there is a chance that this could actually help keep certain bird s at bay. According to a study done to measure the efficacy of plastic owls, there was a decrease in the number of birds that visited feeders where plastic owls were placed. Then again, you may have also seen some daring birds sit atop or right near the faux predators. Results can vary, but it is possible that plastic predators could help to deter some bird species for a short period of time.

There are other bird deterrents that work that you may want to try such as mylar balloons or dis posable aluminum pans. The noise and reflective qualities help prevent birds from perching in those areas.

Clean up food that could attract birds

Even if we wouldn’t typically consider perch ing birds to be pests, they can be attracted to similar things like other common pests. For example, food that is left out might attract unwanted birds in the same manner that leaving food out could also attract other pests. If you follow behaviors to keep birds away in the first place, you’re less likely to deal with any that try to perch or build nests near or on your home. Also, if you’re tryin g to keep birds from hanging out on your roof and window sills, it’s probably wise to remove any bird feeders you might have near your home.

Reduce Locations for Birds to Bathe

Even if they w ere not meant as birdbaths, shallow ponds could offer birds a place to eat and bathe. Anything you can do to make your yard and home less attractive is going to be helpful for keeping birds at bay.

Common perching birds

Now that you know some tips to help keep birds from perching, let’s look at some of the bird types that are more likely to perch near or on your home. Perch ing birds, also known as song birds, belong to the order Passeriformes. They’re the most common type of bird across the world. In the United States, there are many different types of perching birds th at you might run into. And even if their song may be pleasant, there’s a chance you don’t want them hanging around too much and making a mess. Below are a few of the different common perching birds within the United States. It’s worth noting that because there are so many different species of perching birds, different ones are popular in different regions of the country.
  • Flycatchers
  • Swallows
  • Crows, ravens, and jays
  • Finches
  • Wrens
  • Sparrows
Some of these species are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. Disturbance of nesting birds can result in fines. Always contact a State Wildlife Biologist if you’re unsure of bird species and laws in your state.