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One of my obsessions is making bird boxes.
With fewer and fewer old trees available to provide nesting holes its important to provide some sort of shelter for wild birds. A place they can raise their young and retreat to when the weather is harsh.
I have made many standard bird and bat boxes in the
Chard
Nature Reserve from timber I supplied, new and from timber donated or
scrounged.
Getting good quality timber is difficult to get for free.
Chard
Reservoir Nature Reserve is owned by SSDC.
Last year we had 100% success rate with evidence of
occupation in the hole nesting boxes. None of the open fronted were used
however. I believe this is due to the high squirrel population and the
predation.
Offwell Nature Reserve also has about 40 of my bird and bat boxes.
The local Primary School has 8 boxes, and many locals have my boxes
erected. A further 17 are in Stoke sub Hamdon Somerset.
I walked through my local nature reserve yesterday
(30th March 2009) and was pleased to see activity in the boxes
from the woodland birds.
My inspection of boxes so far indicates that all hole
nesting boxes have been used (Oct 2009)
Please email me mailto:lewbat@tiscali.co.uk
Using timber treated with preservative.
I do not agree with the use of timber containing
chemicals.
Use some commonsense if you are going to construct a bird
nesting box.
The danger as I see it is that the chemicals in the
timber may affect the eggs. On a hot summers day the chemicals may
pervade the interior of the bird box.
Would you to raise your young in a building stinking
of chemicals on a hot day?
The sensible answer would be no and neither would the
birds.
I use pins and screws in construction and if I am forced to use exterior
plywood the boxes are reinforced with
timber battens inside.
Most of my boxes have pivotal front for easy access.
I favour this as the RSPB design has lift up hinged lid which can make
access to clean and inspect difficult when perched on a ladder. It can leak after
a few years. Mine are fixed roof.
However if you plan to survey the birds or ring them a
top access lid is essential.
Perches
I do not add perches as this will provide
easy access for
predators. Woodpeckers and squirrels will gain entry and kill the young .
A bird is quite capable of flying directly to the entrance without assistance
of a perch.
Size of the aperture.
The RSPB /BTO gives guidance in this and this would
depend on what species you hope to attract to your garden. As I have made
many boxes for Wildlife reserves I favour the use of 32mm as this will
provide access for many woodland species. In the wild a natural hole in a
tree does not appear in any particular size so I take my cue from that.
Use a metal baffle of wire or plate surrounding the access hole to
deter predators.
A nesting box should be erected in late autumn or early the winter months to
provide shelter and allow time for the birds to inspect suitable nesting
places.
Fixing and positioning the box.
Do not nail the box to a tree! It is far better to use
some polypropylene rope or good strong plastic covered wire and to tie it to the trunk or a limb. Tie it loosely so the box
sags against the tree. This will allow for the
growth of the trunk over time, and will not damage the future use of the tree
for timber.
The other advantage is that you will be able to easily
move the box for siting,
repair or cleaning. The weight of the box will keep it in place if it is a
well constructed box. Don't worry about the wind moving the box in inclement
weather, the birds are used to that.
Cleaning.
Inspect the box in the Autumn, clean out the old nesting
material replace with a handful of hay or dry moss. If you are dealing with
only one or two boxes in your garden kill any mites in the box with hot
water.
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Click on images to enlarge
Oak Starling Box
Solid Oak Box Reinforced entrance
Freecycle members supplied the timber for the above boxes. Some shown above started life as bed head boards and these were sold to raise money for charity
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Solitary bee box Using materials from the Chard Nature Reserve. Download Bees PDF file
Oak Bat Box this one is at Offwell nr Honiton England
Basic Oak Box I prefer the hinged front instead of roof as this is more water tight. Design is not suitable for ringing or special surveys.
An Oak Owl Box I made according the the RSPB design fixed at Offwell Wood Land Trust I now realise that this design is flawed which is surprising as it is recommended by RSPB. As you can see from the above image the box is narrow and far too deep and the landing perch too long. A design more suitable for Tawny Owls can be viewed at
The design Dutch Letter box for Tawny Owls featured is by far the best I have seen.
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If you have any carpentry skills why not make a bird box, and donate it to your favourite charity shop. If made with scraps of timber it will cost almost nothing, the birds get a home, the charity gets the cash, the new owner gets a bird box, you recycle timber and you get the satisfaction.
Please contact me mailto:lewbat@tiscali.co.uk To donate any timber or you wish to contribute to this idea.
We could start a national theme. Plenty of Plans are on RSPB web site or BTO for more comprehensive boxes. or download pdf file Bird Nesting Boxes Plans
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