You might decide you don't want your birds to just drop by to eat and take a bath. Perhaps you'd like it if they'd stick around while. Try putting up a bird house or two.
In the bird house business, there's no such thing as "one size fits all." Decide which bird you want to attract, and then get a house for that particular bird. Look through any book or catalog and you'll see bird houses of all sizes and shapes, with perches and without, made of materials you might not have thought of: recycled paper, gourds, plastic, rubber, pottery, metal and concrete. The proper combination of quality materials and design makes a good birdhouse.
Wood is just about the best building material for any birdhouse. It's durable, has good insulating qualities and breathes. Three-quarter-inch thick bald cypress and red cedar are recommended. Pine and exterior grade plywood will do, but they are not as durable. It makes no difference whether the wood is slab, rough-cut or finished, as long as the inside has not been treated with stains or preservatives. Fumes from the chemicals could harm the birds.
You can decorate the outside of your birdhouse however you want. Do you want your martins to hang out in a Victorian home or have your cardinals roost in a clubhouse? Anything goes as far as the outside of the house is concerned. Don't put an aluminum roof on your bird house, however. The glare from the sun will cause birds to shy away. Be sure to provide ventilation, drainage, and easy access for maintenance and monitoring.
How elaborate you make your bird house depends on your own tastes. In addition to where you place the box, the most important considerations are: box height, depth, floor dimensions, diameter of entrance hole and height of the hole above the box floor.
You should provide air vents in bird boxes. There are two ways to provide ventilation: leave gaps between the roof and sides of the box, or drill 1/4 inch holes just below the roof.
Water becomes a problem when it sits in the bottom of a bird house. A roof with sufficient slope and overhang offers some protection. Drilling the entrance hole on an upward slant may also help keep the water out. Regardless of design, driving rain will get in through the entrance hole. You can assure proper drainage by cutting away the corners of the box floor and drilling 1/4 inch holes. Nest boxes will last longer if the floors are recessed about 1/4 inch.
Look for the entrance hole on the front panel near the top. A rough surface both inside and out makes it easier for the adults to get into the box and, when it's time, for the nestlings to climb out.
If your box is made of finished wood, add a couple of grooves outside below the hole. Open the front panel and add grooves, cleats or wire mesh to the inside. Never put up a bird house with a perch below the entrance hole.
Perches offer starlings, house sparrows and other predators a convenient place to wait for lunch. Don't be tempted by duplexes or houses that have more than one entrance hole. Except for purple martins, cavity-nesting birds prefer not to share a house. While these condos look great in your yard, starlings and house sparrows are inclined to use them.
Where you put your bird house is as important as its design and construction. Cavity-nesting birds are very particular about where they live. If you don't have the right habitat, the birds are not likely to find the house. You can modify your land to attract the birds you want to see by putting out a bird bath, planting fruit-bearing shrubs, including more trees or installing a pond with a waterfall.
Don't put bird houses near bird feeders. Houses mounted on metal poles are less vulnerable to predators than houses nailed to tree trunks or hung from tree limbs.
Use no more than four small nest boxes or one large box per acre for any one species. Don't put more than one box in a tree unless the tree is extremely large or the boxes are for different species. If you have very hot summers, face the entrance holes of your boxes north or east to avoid overheating the box.
Photo credit: www.sxc.hu/profile/NYOBE
In the bird house business, there's no such thing as "one size fits all." Decide which bird you want to attract, and then get a house for that particular bird. Look through any book or catalog and you'll see bird houses of all sizes and shapes, with perches and without, made of materials you might not have thought of: recycled paper, gourds, plastic, rubber, pottery, metal and concrete. The proper combination of quality materials and design makes a good birdhouse.
Wood is just about the best building material for any birdhouse. It's durable, has good insulating qualities and breathes. Three-quarter-inch thick bald cypress and red cedar are recommended. Pine and exterior grade plywood will do, but they are not as durable. It makes no difference whether the wood is slab, rough-cut or finished, as long as the inside has not been treated with stains or preservatives. Fumes from the chemicals could harm the birds.
You can decorate the outside of your birdhouse however you want. Do you want your martins to hang out in a Victorian home or have your cardinals roost in a clubhouse? Anything goes as far as the outside of the house is concerned. Don't put an aluminum roof on your bird house, however. The glare from the sun will cause birds to shy away. Be sure to provide ventilation, drainage, and easy access for maintenance and monitoring.
How elaborate you make your bird house depends on your own tastes. In addition to where you place the box, the most important considerations are: box height, depth, floor dimensions, diameter of entrance hole and height of the hole above the box floor.
You should provide air vents in bird boxes. There are two ways to provide ventilation: leave gaps between the roof and sides of the box, or drill 1/4 inch holes just below the roof.
Water becomes a problem when it sits in the bottom of a bird house. A roof with sufficient slope and overhang offers some protection. Drilling the entrance hole on an upward slant may also help keep the water out. Regardless of design, driving rain will get in through the entrance hole. You can assure proper drainage by cutting away the corners of the box floor and drilling 1/4 inch holes. Nest boxes will last longer if the floors are recessed about 1/4 inch.
Look for the entrance hole on the front panel near the top. A rough surface both inside and out makes it easier for the adults to get into the box and, when it's time, for the nestlings to climb out.
If your box is made of finished wood, add a couple of grooves outside below the hole. Open the front panel and add grooves, cleats or wire mesh to the inside. Never put up a bird house with a perch below the entrance hole.
Perches offer starlings, house sparrows and other predators a convenient place to wait for lunch. Don't be tempted by duplexes or houses that have more than one entrance hole. Except for purple martins, cavity-nesting birds prefer not to share a house. While these condos look great in your yard, starlings and house sparrows are inclined to use them.
Where you put your bird house is as important as its design and construction. Cavity-nesting birds are very particular about where they live. If you don't have the right habitat, the birds are not likely to find the house. You can modify your land to attract the birds you want to see by putting out a bird bath, planting fruit-bearing shrubs, including more trees or installing a pond with a waterfall.
Don't put bird houses near bird feeders. Houses mounted on metal poles are less vulnerable to predators than houses nailed to tree trunks or hung from tree limbs.
Use no more than four small nest boxes or one large box per acre for any one species. Don't put more than one box in a tree unless the tree is extremely large or the boxes are for different species. If you have very hot summers, face the entrance holes of your boxes north or east to avoid overheating the box.
Photo credit: www.sxc.hu/profile/NYOBE
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