Birds love to perch near their food and water, to have a safe place for watching the surroundings.
The closer the birds are, the more interesting they are to watch.
A bird swing is easy to make and fun to watch in action. I am the least likely to make anything except a new book, but I did come up with the recipe for this.
At a hardware store:
1. Buy a metal rod of suitable length, such as 12 to 24 inches. The circumference should be narrow. A wooden dowel will also work for this, but a threaded metal rod will stick in the chains better.
2. Buy two lengths of chain where the links allow the rod to pass through. If the clerk asks what this is for, make something up. People think bird swings are weird. I suggest, "This is a lightning rod for my hamster cage." Believe it or not, that will be more acceptable than "a bird swing."
3. Buy two hooks that will screw into the window frame on top.
4. The chains hang from the hooks and the metal rod goes through the chain links.
Soon the birds will land on the swing and have a merry time on it. Smaller birds will favor it, because they can maneuver a landing. Two or three will swing on it at once, depending on the room allowed.
Doubtless a perch could be fashioned easily too, but I like seeing the birds swing back and forth, and they seem to enjoy the movement. A bird will land on a narrow branch of the bush near the feeder and swing back and forth. The vertical sprout will only hold one small bird, so he knows he will not look down and find a cat crawling up to catch him.
