What You Can Do to Help Maryland’s Birds

7 Simple Actions to Help Birds

Protect Your Local Forests

Help Maryland DNR map the location of invasive plants in parks and forests through Statewide Eyes, remove invasive plants from your own backyard, and organize your own invasive-removal event at your favorite park.

Help preserve forested land by supporting one of the many land trust organizations in Maryland, including;

• The Nature Conservancy

• The Eastern Shore Land Conservancy

• Howard County Conservancy

• Chesapeake Conservancy

• The Maryland Environmental Trust

• Lower Shore Land Trust

• Scenic Rivers Land Trust

• Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust

• The Conservation Fund

• The Trust for Public Lands

• Conservancy for Charles County

Reduce Bird-Window Collisions

A study by the American Bird Conservancy has shown Wood Thrush to be particularly susceptible to fatal window collisions. If your residence is causing bird strikes, there are many ways you can stop them.

Plant Native Plants

Modern day nurseries sell more exotic plants than natives. Unfortunately many of these exotics escape our backyards through dispersed seeds. As climate, fragmentation, and pests increasingly threaten forest health, it is critical reduce the impact invasive plants on our land. Planting natives is easy, and can help provide food and habitat for a larger number of birds.

Build and Install a Nest Box

We can help cavity-nesting species like Eastern Bluebirds, Wood Ducks, Tree Swallows, and many other birds by providing the right kind of nest box in the right habitat. Do you have open habitat on your property? You may be able to attract Eastern Bluebirds by building and installing MBCP's nest box design. The cavity-nesting American Kestrel and American Barn Owl also require open habitat, and you can learn more about MBCP’s Farmland Raptor Program on our website. If you’re interested in hosting other species, the Cornell Lab’s NestWatch program is a great resource for information about nest boxes and where to place a nest box.