moroni

Here's a funny addition to a bird's nesting material. Last year while I was reading quietly on my (open) porch swing, a little bird landed on my head and gently started rooting around for loose hairs and flew away with some. This happened 3 times and I chuckled all the while hoping it wouldn't do any business on my head while there. After telling my husband about it, the next day the same thing happened to him while he was reading. It was so cute. It was a tufted titmouse.

misseva

around my neck of the woods it's not cold enough for baby birds to freeze - it's spring.

208Adverse

My mother used to put leftover yarn on the pine branches in the early spring. They loved it.

BarbaraSue

This is a good use of scraps and snippets. will give it a try.:)

IdahoSandy

I always clean my lint catcher in the dryer after the weeks washing. You can put that out too in the early spring when birds are looking for material for bird nest building.
IdahoSandy

Roberta

I put batting that is cut into tiny pieces. I used to use my Dog Hunter's fur and I sometimes use thread, cut in very small lengths. I keep mine out all year and put the "stash" in a metal suet holder. A goldfinch has been taking the leftover fur and string out of it for a few weeks to build her nest.

ptquilts

We used to have a cotton hammock and the chickadees would pull fibers out for their nests.

grandjan

Early spring, when the birds are building nests.

jpthequilter

Cut the scraps longish and narrow. The birds weave them!
That shape, like snippets of yarn, are easier for the birds to poke and weave into a nest.

teacherbailey

I did this when my daughter had a new litter of hamsters, way back when (in the early 90's). They loved the bits of fabric and thread for nesting BUT we ended up untangling tiny, fragile baby hamster legs from thread and one ended up with three legs when it was all over; the 4th leg had the circulation cut off for too long. I just can't put out thread for any species after that trauma! I put out small scraps but not thread leftovers.