Increasing urbanisation means that birds are increasingly under pressure. Research by Steven & Newsome in Biodiversity and Conservation suggests ways gardeners can help. While the research is focussed on Australia, people around the world can apply the findings to their own backyard.
1. Your Garden Could Be a Year-Round Bird Buffet
Creating a garden that provides reliable food for birds isn’t just about planting nectar-rich flowers. Different birds have different dietary needs – from nectar-sippers to berry-gatherers to insect-hunters. Gardens need to support diverse food sources year-round. Plant a mix of species that attract insects, provide nectar at different times, and create varied habitats.
“For example, to attract insectivorous birds that are urban adaptors, the plant species selected need to attract insects, usually as pollinators and select against providing nectar-rich, year-round flowering cultivars… The structure of the garden is also a critical aspect dictating habitat suitability for different species of birds…”
2. Your Pet Could Be Part of the Problem (But There’s a Solution)
The impact of domestic pets on urban birds is staggering. Cats may look cute, but they’re also deadly, killing birds in their millions. Dogs are less lethal, but can still discourage birds from visiting or breeding in gardens through their mere presence. The good news? You can dramatically reduces this treat by keeping cats indoors or in special enclosures.
“Research has conservatively estimated that domestic roaming cats kill as many as 61 million birds across Australia each year… The best way to mitigate the pet-related threat to birds is containment.”
3. Those Old Trees Are More Valuable Than You Think
There’s often pressure to take an axe to old trees due to safety concerns. But veteran trees are irreplaceable for many bird species. You might not get parrots or kookaburras in your garden, but owls, sparrows and tits all rely on tree hollows that can take decades or even centuries to form naturally. Older trees can provide a vital haven in a neighbourhood that has none elsewhere.
“Retaining old trees wherever possible is the best way to ensure cavity nesting species such as pardalotes, parrots and owls can continue to sustain their populations in the urban environment.”
4. The Hidden Impact of Garden Chemicals
Do you need to use so many pesticides? Those poisoned insects may become lunch for local wrens, warblers, or finches. Natural pest control methods can protect both your garden and its bird visitors. Even rodent poisoning can cause secondary poisoning in birds of prey like owls when they eat what looks like an easy meal.
“Avoiding the use of insecticides, especially systemic formulations, in gardens is one of the most immediate behaviour changes that can improve the viability of the urban environment as a habitat for insects.”
5. Water is More Critical Than You Realise
Rainfall is becoming less reliable due to climate change. That makes clean water sources increasingly important for urban birds. Bird baths aren’t just garden decorations. Some birds, like black cockatoos, have specific daily drinking patterns that make reliable water sources essential. You don’t need a whole pond, just enough for the birds to use.
“Clean and well-maintained birdbaths will provide an important source of water for drinking and bathing in urban Australia where access to fresh water from rainfall is predicted to become less reliable as a result of anthropogenic climate change.”
6. Garden Design Matters More Than You Think
A “low maintenance” garden sounds perfect if you live a busy life, but it’s a trend that’s creating environments that many birds simply can’t use. Birds need complex, multi-layered vegetation that provides different resources. Whether it’s low cover for ground-level foraging, higher bushes for mid-level shelter, or canopy nesting sites, a mix of height and structure opens up more opportunities for a bird to exploit.
“The trend towards simplistic and homogenous gardens, often marketed as ‘low maintenance’, has resulted in an urban environment that lacks the ability to support many bird species we would term urban adaptors.”
7. Windows Are a Hidden Hazard
If you want to find a big killer in cities, don’t look out your window. Look at it. Birds often can’t distinguish between reflections and real habitat. When spooked a bird will try to fly quickly from danger. Adding speed to the mix means a rush to escape can lead to a fatal collision. Window decals, external screens, or careful placement of bird baths and feeders can help prevent collisions wherever you are.
“Although not well documented in Australia, birds striking windows in urban areas is a cause of mortality for many bird species globally… The hazard of window strikes often arises from glass reflecting the sky and vegetation nearby which gives birds the false impression of extent or depth of habitat.”
The Power of Working Together
While a garden can be valuable for wildlife, Steven & Newsome argue that neighbourhood-wide collaboration can be more powerful. Through connecting chains of gardens in streets or suburbs, gardeners can establish wildlife corridors. They hold up community gardens as examples of people coming together to magnify their own efforts. This can create a habitat bigger than the sum of its parts.
“Working in isolation will yield limited benefits for birds and biodiversity. If urban neighbourhoods can work collaboratively and dedicatedly towards the annual displays of Christmas lights seen across many Anglophone countries each year, can we not direct the same thought, planning and investment towards neighbourhoods for birds and biodiversity? There is precedence here, with local government-led examples focusing on the creation of community gardens and enhancing biodiversity in verge gardens delivering tangible ecological benefits to biodiversity and social benefits to the humans that create them.”
Steven, R. and Newsome, D. (2025) ‘More than garden plants: extending the conversation of urban gardens as an important refuge for Australian birds’, Biodiversity and Conservation. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-025-03011-2 (FREE)
All quotes from Steven & Newsome 2025.
All images from Canva.
Cross-posted to Bluesky & Mastodon.
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