10 Things You Can Do to Help Birds

Let me give you a staggering and sobering number:

Since 1970, 2.9 billion birds have disappeared from North America.

Yes, you read that correctly. Almost 25% of the total number of birds have vanished in less than a single lifetime.

And it’s not just rare birds whose numbers are down. Most of our common and beloved birds are plummeting. For example:

• Red-winged Blackbirds have declined by 92 million.

• Dark-eyed Juncos are down 168 million.
• White-throated Sparrows have lost 93 million individuals.

I hate to think of what will happen to the birds we love and their ecosystems if we keep going at this pace.

The reasons for the decline are varied and include many factors. But one thing is for sure, the problem is not going to get better unless we start changing our behaviors.

Below is a list of 10 easy things you can do to help birds:

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#1. Help birds avoid your windows.

Birds crashing into windows is a BIG problem. It’s estimated that up to ONE billion birds die each year from window collisions! Not only is this having an impact on local populations, but it’s also incredibly sad to find a dead bird that has been a victim.

Birds hit windows because they don’t even realize they’re there! Typically, the window reflects vegetation, the sky, or trees, so a bird thinks it’s part of the environment.

Here’s how you can help:

• Make sure that you break up the reflection of your windows, especially ones that have had birds hit them in the past. You can read this article for more information on how to stop birds from hitting your windows.

• A huge problem for birds is tall buildings during migration, especially ones with lots of glass. Contact your U.S. Representative or Sentator using this form to encourage them to support bird-safe building legislation.

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#2. Keep your cats indoors.

Our family has a cat named Tigger. We love Tigger very much, just like anyone who has a cat. 

But we NEVER let Tigger go outside (unless he is on a leash with us), both for his protection and for the birds in our yard.

It’s estimated that outdoor cats kill anywhere between 1.3 to 4 billion birds per year, along with over 6 billion small mammals. That impacts ecosystems greatly, especially since domestic cats are not supposed to be there.

Second, it’s incredibly dangerous for cats to live outside. They face numerous threats, including getting hit by cars, being attacked by coyotes and other animals, contracting diseases from other cats, exposure to parasites, ingestion of poisons and toxic substances, extreme weather conditions, and the potential to get lost or separated from their owner.

Do the birds and your cat a favor and keep them inside.

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#3. Drink coffee that protects habitats.

Many of the birds that live in the United States and Canada are migratory. These species only spend the breeding season here. As the weather starts to cool, they migrate to the tropics of Central and South America.

These migrating birds, such as tanagers, orioles, and warblers, need appropriate habitats to spend their winters, or they won’t survive. Unfortunately, these critical habitats are increasingly threatened by deforestation, often driven by agricultural practices such as sun-grown coffee farming, which replaces forests with open plantations.

Shade-grown coffee, on the other hand, is cultivated beneath a canopy of native trees, preserving the layered structure of the forest and maintaining vital ecosystems. This traditional method of farming allows birds to find food, shelter, and safe resting places during their stay in the tropics.

• Check out my favorite Bird Friendly coffee and get 10% off.

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#4. Avoid anything that ends with “cide.”

I’m talking about pesticides, which include herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, rodenticides, etc. These poisons are marketed as being easy ways to keep your yard free of bugs and other pests, but there is a HUGE hidden cost to them.

Here are just a few ways pesticides are harming birds:

• Pesticides kill off insects, a primary food source for many birds, especially during nesting season.
• Herbicides destroy native plants and flowers, reducing food availability for seed-eating and nectar-feeding birds. Birds also ingest pesticide-contaminated seeds, insects, or water, leading to acute poisoning.
• Pesticides run off into lakes, rivers, and wetlands, poisoning aquatic ecosystems.
• Raptors that eat poisoned rodents can accumulate toxic residues, leading to illness or death.

The bottom line is that no matter where you spray a pesticide, it has the potential to be dangerous. So the safest option (and cheapest) is to keep your yard pesticide-free!

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#5. Use NATIVE plants in your yard.

Native plants are crucial for protecting birds because they provide food, shelter, and nesting sites that non-native plants often cannot.

Most songbirds feed their young insects, especially caterpillars. Native plants host far more insects and pollinators than non-native species. For example, an oak tree can support over 500 species of caterpillars, while a non-native ginkgo tree may support fewer than 5.

In addition, native plants and trees provide food, such as berries, that birds have evolved to eat, provide suitable nesting sites, and don’t require harmful chemicals to grow, which further eliminates pesticides from the environment.

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#6. Reduce your lawn size.

Seriously, this tip is a huge Win-Win.

First, reducing your lawn size helps birds by creating a more diverse, natural habitat that supports insects, provides food, eliminates pesticides, and offers better shelter and nesting sites.

Second, you have less of a lawn to mow!

Here are a few ideas for reducing the size of your lawn:

• Replace part of your lawn with native plants—trees, shrubs, wildflowers, or native grasses.
• Create an area with flowering plants that attract insects and birds.
• Leave some leaf litter and natural debris—it provides insects for birds to eat and material for nests.
• Leave dead trees standing – snags provide nesting and foraging spots for woodpeckers and other birds.

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#7. Recycle.

Seriously, I hope that you are recycling by now. Recycling helps bird populations in many different ways:

• Reduces Plastic Pollution
  • Birds often mistake plastic waste for food, leading to choking, poisoning, or starvation.

• Prevents Habitat Destruction
  • Recycling reduces the need for raw materials like trees, metals, and petroleum-based plastics.

• Decreases Toxic Chemical Pollution
  • Manufacturing new materials releases toxic chemicals into the air, soil, and water, harming birds.

• Lowers Carbon Emissions & Slows Climate Change
  • Extracting, transporting, and processing new materials burns fossil fuels, accelerating climate change.

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#8. Speak out against habitat destruction.

Have you heard of this quote from Will Rogers?

“Buy land. They ain’t making any more of the stuff.”

Unfortunately, it also applies to birds, but in a negative way. Every year, more and more forests, grasslands, and wetlands are destroyed to make way for human development. 

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that if there are fewer spaces for birds to live, their population is going to decrease.

You can help by advocating for the protection of forests, wetlands, and other critical habitats.

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#9. Report the birds you see.

Reporting bird sightings—through citizen science projects like eBird, iNaturalist, the Great Backyard Bird Count, and Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count—is a powerful way to help birds.

By documenting what you see, you help scientists track bird populations and trends, identify threatened and endangered species, and help understand migration patterns. Having this information provides the critical data needed for conservation policies.

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#10. Educate others about birds.

My recommendation is to share this article with as many people as you can!

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Protecting birds isn’t just for scientists or conservationists—it’s something everyone can do.

By making small, intentional choices, you can help create a safer, healthier world for birds and other wildlife. Whether it’s planting native plants, reducing lawn size, or buying bird friendly coffee, each action adds up to a big impact.