Is Woodstock skating on your bird bath?

 

   November is usually the driest month of the year. Windy too. That means our
bird baths dry up in a hurry, so it's good to keep an eye on them and make sure they
stay in water.
  For people up north, November means something else: the first freezes set in as
precursors to a winter of frozen bird baths.
  The best solution for an icy bird bath is is a heater. We folk here in da South kinda snicker at the notion of a heater for a bird bath. "Oh my, what'll they think of next." Our idea of ice is the wiper sticking to the car windshield. At the first forecast of snow, we flock to the stores like a bunch of doomsday preppers. But then, we don't play ice hockey on our ponds and lakes down here.
   So, a bird-bath heater is the best way to go if you live where hard freezes are the
norm. You can buy these things for as little as $20, but the high-end hot-tub versions
go for up to $100. And they're usually plug-in deals, so you have to use a drop-cord
and all that.

Here are other options to consider:

•  Move the bath out of the shade and into the sun.
•  Use a black trash bag as a liner - it absorbs heat.
•  Just clean the birth bath and put it away - birds often don't like to bathe in water during the coldest weather, since the water can freeze up on their feathers.
•  Some birds like to take dust baths, so a small pile of loose sand in the yard might be good.

  If you have one of those garden fountains or some sort of drip device, just keep an eye on it for the coldest temps.
  Of course, bathing isn't the only reason for a bird bath. Birds need to drink, too,
which makes the heater option the best. If you don't want to do any of that, just take
something like a Frizbee or one of those flat bottoms to a potted plant and put it out
each day.
  I live in eastern North Carolina, so I rarely need more than an ice pick and a little
warm water, even on the coldest days. But this year I'm gonna try one of those shallow black dishes you get with a microwave meal at the store, and just put it in the middle of the bath to absorb heat.
  A water source is always an attraction for birds, so it is good to have something out there.
Here's what I saw in my yard today:
(AM, sunny, 47 degrees, 30 minutes)
Carolina Wren
Carolina Chickadee
Chipping Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Tufted Titmouse
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Northern Mockingbird
Mourning Dove