Birds are flight animals, their wings allow them to go anywhere and enjoy the world as few others can. Because of this, we expect birds to fly around and spend most of their time in trees or in the air. But sometimes birds can be found digging holes in the dirt. So why does this happen? Why do birds dig holes in the dirt? 

Birds dig holes in the dirt in search of food, their days are usually spent looking for food and they will go high and low to find it. The floor is an easy place to find food. In addition, birds also dig holes in the ground to create a place to have a dust bath or a place to lay their eggs

 

Why do birds dig holes in the dirt?​​

A frequently seen behaviour is that of birds digging holes in the dirt. Researchers say that this is a basic instinct of birds. And the reason they do this is quite simple 

Before being domesticated, birds had to fend and find food on their own. An easy location for finding food was in the ground. So, scratching and pecking at spots in the ground is just as natural and instinctive as flying for birds.

Their instincts are to find food, but there are also other reasons why they dig holes in the dirt. Birds will dig holes in the dirt to create a comfy and guarded place to lay their eggs. They will also dig in dirt to loosen soil to make a dust bath which is beneficial in removing moisture even parasites living beneath their feathers.

What birds dig holes in the ground?

Ground birds, or birds that nest in the ground, and those not well suited for flight are most frequently seen ploughing away at the earth. These ground diggers include:

• chickens,

• ostriches

• Avocets,

• Plovers,

• Sandpipers,

• Stilts,

• Killdeers,

• Flamingos,

• Rails,

• Cranes,

• Geese,

• Ducks,

• Turkeys,

• Pheasants,

• Ducks,

• Guineafowls,

• Thrushes,

• Larks,

• Sparrows

The list stretches on, there are many more birds that instinctively dig around in the ground for food, nesting and to get a dust bath going, but you get the picture.

How do I stop birds digging up my soil?

Even though it’s instinctual, there are several valid reasons to want birds to stop digging up your soil. For starters there digging will weaken the roots and base for plants. It will unearth planted seeds which they will eat. It will quite literally make a mess of mulch, gardens, and yard space. They may even damage themselves if they dig up harmful critters and parasites which enter their nostrils, wounds, and other openings.

So how to stop them? Homemade remedies to stop birds from digging up your soil include stashing wads of cotton balls soaked in ammonia in your garden patch. The strong and offensive smell, as well as the off-putting taste of ammonia, will keep birds away.

Also, layering shiny, reflective wrapping over the soil will also help. The shiny wrapping will reflect the light of the sun making it reflect and almost blinding the birds, this will make your property unattractive to birds.

What other animal may be digging holes in my yard at night?

While birds do dig holes in the dirt, they aren’t the only suspects that dig holes in your yard. Dogs and rabbits are known to plough away at the ground on occasions. Nocturnal or night-time animals like raccoons and skunks are key suspects as these night-time diggers search for earthy grub in yards too.

How do you keep animals from digging holes in your yard?

Besides birds, deterring other animals from digging holes in your yard first begins with taking steps to remove resources that are attractive to diggers. For example, removing available food sources from your lawn. Even placing a lining of gravel above the softer soil have been known to reduce digging somewhat.

Conclusion

In conclusion, birds dig holes in the ground because it is an easy place to find food, they also dig holes in the ground to create a place to have a dust bath and to lay their eggs in. Birds like chickens, duck, geese and other ground birds dig holes in the ground. Other animals that may be digging up your yard include dogs, raccoons, skunks and rabbits. To combat this install a layer of gravel above the softer soil to limit digging

If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Why do birds eat their eggs?, Why do birds get puffy?​​, Why do birds like music?​​, Why do birds follow me?​​,