3 bird feeders your school goer can make at home

Birds are reducing in number in the Indian cities. The reasons are many, lack of food, terrible pollution, too many mobile towers, heat, lack of greenery – we could go on – but we can see for ourselves that their numbers have fallen. The house sparrow, specially, is on a rapid decline. Having birds around is healthy, cheerful and a great way to reconnect with nature. Here are some ideas to make bird feeders, easy enough for even pre-teen kids.  

Half orange bird feeder 
We call it half orange, but you can ask your kid to use any fruit skin, not smaller than an orange and not bigger than a watermelon. Once she has scooped out the fruit (and eaten it too), suggest that she washes the fruit skin well. She has to make 2 holes on either side, insert thin ropes and tie the fruit skin to the balcony, window grill, garden or any other place where small birds can come. At the end, the empty fruit skin has to be filled with a mix of seeds and dry food and the bird feeder is ready.  

Soup ladle bird feeder 
This is the simplest idea. Your little one has to use an old kitchen utensil with a deep cavity and long handle. Something like a ladle or even a small tea making sauce pan can also work. Ask your child to hang it from a nail or screw from a wooden surface. If he can’t find that, he has to first mount a piece of wood as background at the chosen spot, hammer in the nail and hang the ladle from it. Finally, it has to be filled with bird food. Leftovers can be a good option as sparrows love rice.  

Soda bottle bird feeder 
Empty plastic beverage bottles can be recycled as bird feeders. The first step is to clean and dry the bottle with the cap on. Your child needs to cut 4 holes on opposite sides, the first set 2 cm, and the next 5 cm above the bottom. Have her insert strings through the ones closer to the bottom so that the bottle can be tied upside down. Wooden or plastic spoons can be inserted in the next set of holes. Now, the bottle needs to be opened and filled in with bird feed. It’s good to stay away from the feeder, or else, the birds will be scared away.