BIRD STUDY 19 
THE BIRD BATH 
Nothing will do so much to bring different birds about 
the premises as a bird bath. This is especially important in 
South Dakota, for in most places it is a long way to open water. 
The bath should be contained in a wide, shallow dish, so that 
more than one bird can drink or bathe at a time. This is not 
necessary from the bird’s standpoint, but it makes the bath 
much more interesting to watch. It also makes it much more 
instructive, as it gives ampler opportunity for birds to reveal 
their characteristics and their relations to one another. 
If the bath will admit of it, it should be lined with sod, 
for in nature the favorite bathing place of birds is a grassy pool 
beside a running stream. Cut a piece of sod well under the roots, 
wash all the dirt out of it, shear the grass close, cover the floor 
of the bath with this sod rug, and then pour in water until 
it is an inch deep above it. The grass will grow in the water 
and should be cut regularly with the rest of the lawn. 
The bath should be placed in the open and raised about 
two feet above the ground. Birds are off their guard to some 
extent when drinking and bathing, and the raising of the bath 
helps to protect them from prowling cats. 
