Checking Your Birdhouses and Nest Boxes

Watch the birdhouse for a couple of days.  If you don't see or hear any birds, go over and tap on the box. If you hear bird sounds, open the top and take a quick peek inside. If everything's okay, close the box. If you see problems (parasites or predators), remove them and close the box.


Installing birdhouses that can be opened from the top will make the process of maintaining your birdhouses a simpler job.  Most bird houses can be opened from the top, the side, the front, or the bottom.

Birdhouses that open from the top and the front provide the easiest access.  Opening the box from the top is less likely to disturb nesting birds.  It's impossible to open a box from the bottom without the nest falling out.  While side- and front-opening boxes are convenient for cleaning and monitoring, they have one drawback: the nestlings may jump out.

If this happens, don't panic.  Just pick them up and put them back in the nest.  Don't worry that the adults will reject the nestlings if you handle them.  That's a myth.  Most birds have a terrible sense of smell.

If you clean out your birdhouses after each brood has fledged, several pairs may use the nest throughout the summer.  Many cavity nesting birds will not nest again in a box full of old nesting

In the fall, after you've cleaned out your bird houses for the last time, you can put them in storage or leave them out.  Gourds and pottery last longer if you take them in for the winter.  You can leave your purple martin houses up, but be sure to plug the entrance holes to discourage starlings and house sparrows.   Leaving your wood and concrete houses out provides shelter for birds, flying squirrels, and other animals during winter.   Each spring be sure to clean out all the birdhouses you've left out for the winter.

BIRDS YOU CAN ATTRACT TO YOUR BIRD HOUSES AND NEST BOXES

Many of the birds that visit feeders and baths may stay and nest in nearby trees. Most of them, including cardinals, doves and orioles, don't nest in bird houses or nesting boxes. You can still help them by considering their food and shelter requirements in your landscape plans. You can also hang out a wire cage full of nesting materials (fiber scraps, twigs, wool, or feathers) in the spring.

More than two dozen North American birds will nest in bird houses. The following descriptions will help you determine which birds might visit your neighborhood. 

Bluebirds  

If you put up bluebird birdhouses near an old field, orchard, park, cemetery, or golf course, you'll have a good chance of attracting a pair of bluebirds. They prefer bird houses on a tree stump or wooden fence post between three and five feet high. Bluebirds also nest in abandoned woodpecker nest holes. The most important measurement for a bluebird birdhouse is the hole diameter. An inch and a half is small enough to deter starlings. Starlings and house sparrows have been known to kill baby bluebirds as well as adults sitting on the nest. 

Bluebirds have problems with other animals too. The easiest way to discourage predatory cats, snakes, raccoons, and chipmunks is to mount the house on a metal pole, or use a metal predator guard on a wood post. 

Robins

Robins are our largest thrushes. They prefer to build their nest in the crotch of a tree. If you don't have an appropriate tree, you can offer a nesting platform. Pick a spot six feet or higher up on a shaded tree trunk or under the overhang of a shed or porch. Creating a "mud puddle" nearby offers further excitement, as robins use mud to line their nests.  

Please check out the vast array of bird houses at www.aboutbirdhouses.com.

What You Should Know About Brids and Their Birdhouses

It doesn't matter where you live -- in an apartment, townhouse, or single family dwelling, in the city, suburbs or country. Just stand still and you'll hear them: wild birds. It's hard to imagine life without them.Bird watching is one of the fastest growing hobbies in the country. 

It's easy to understand why. Birds are fun to watch.  And you can watch them just about everywhere. The most convenient place to start is right in your own backyard. All it takes to get their attention is water, food, and a place to build a nest. 

This information is designed to help you build or buy suitable birdhouse or nesting boxes--for birds. Your success in attracting birds will depend on what you know about birds and the birdhouse design.  Here’s what you need to know to get started:

• which birds nest in houses
• basics of bird-house construction
• proper placement
• good maintenance
• how to deal with predators
• monitoring. 

In future posts we will talk about each of these items.  In the meantime checkout this website www.aboutbirdhouses.com.

Bluebird Birdhouses

Blue Birds Birdhouses

A Bluebird belongs to a group of brightly colored thrushes related to the Robin and native to North America. Bluebirds live in open country that contains scattered trees, usually in old farmlands or orchards. They nest in tree holes or man birdhouses which they line with fine grass.

The female Bluebird lays three to seven pale blue or white eggs at a time and may have two or three broods a year. Both parents care for their young that remain in the bluebird birdhouse for 15 – 19 days. Bluebirds feed on caterpillars, beetles, grasshoppers and many other insects that may be harmful to crops. When insects are not available in large numbers during winter, Bluebirds eat berries.

Providing water in the form of birdbaths encourages Bluebirds to stick around the backyard. They are quite partial to the sound of dripping water and have no specific preference whether it is a commercial dripper or a self-provided water device. Providing suitable birdhouses will convince them to stay and nest.

                                                                                                                                       

Check out our birdhouses at www.aboutbirdhouses.com.