Birdfeeder Care
Birdhouse placement
Tips
on Birdhouse Placement
When to place birdhouses
Make sure your birdhouses are in place well
before the breeding season begins. Don’t be
discouraged if the birds do not begin nesting in
your box immediately; sometimes it takes time for
the birds to find it.
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In the south, place your
birdhouses by February. |
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In northern regions, place
your birdhouses by mid to late March. |
If you are looking
to attract a variety of species to your nest
boxes and have ample room, you might consider
pairing your boxes. This involves placing boxes
in pairs on poles 15 to 25 feet apart; or you can
put two boxes, back to back, on a single pole.
Birds such as Tree Swallows and bluebirds will
nest closely to one another, although
conspecifics will be driven away. Pairing boxes
has the advantage of allowing more birds of both
species to coexist peacefully within the same
habitat.
Golf courses, cultivated fields, gardens, and
yards are great habitats for nest boxes, but
avoid areas where pesticides and herbicides are
used. These agents are not only harmful to birds,
they decrease and sometimes eliminate insect
populations—the primary food source for many
cavity-nesting species.
How to place your birdhouse
Whichever method you choose to erect your boxes,
be sure your box is secure enough to withstand
high winds and severe weather.
The best way to erect small nest boxes is on
free-standing metal poles or PVC pipes. These
pipes or poles offer several advantages:
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Nest boxes can be mounted
higher than when mounted on a fence post. |
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Many predators find poles
difficult to climb. |
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Poles can also be easily
equipped with a predator guard. |
Where
to place nest boxes
Bluebird
open field or lawn; orchards; open, rural country
with scattered trees and low or sparse ground
cover; Mountain and Western bluebirds will also
use deciduous and coniferous forest edges;
entrance hole should face open field, preferring
east, north, south, and then west facing
directions.
box height: 3-6 feet
Purple Martin
broad open areas (meadows, fields, farmland,
swamps, ponds, lakes, rivers) with unobstructed
space for foraging on flying insects; there
should be no trees or buildings within 40 feet of
the martin pole in any direction
box height: 10-15 feet
Wood Duck
forested wetlands or near marshes, swamps, and
beaver ponds; place boxes in deciduous trees,
30-100 feet from the nearest water, spaced 600
feet apart. add 3" of wood shavings
box height: 6-30 feet
American Kestrel
pastures, fields, meadows, or orchards with mowed
or grazed vegetation; place boxes on lone trees
in fields, on trees along edges of woodlots, and
on farm buildings
box height: 10-30 feet
Eastern Screech Owl
forests, parks, woodland clearings, forest edges,
wooded stream edges, under a tree limb. entrance
hole should face north. Add 2"-3" of
wood shavings
box height: 10-30 feet
Western Screech Owl
lower elevations, forests, parks, woodland
clearings, forest edges, deserts, wooded stream
edges, under a tree limb. entrance hole should
face north. Add 2"-3" of wood shavings
box height: 10-30 feet
Great Crested Flycatcher
deciduous or mixed deciduous-coniferous forests,
forest edges, woodlots, orchards, parks, on post
or tree at forest edge
box height: 3-20 feet
Ash-throated Flycatcher
chaparral, mesquite thickets, oak scrub, dry
plains spotted with trees or cacti, deserts, and
open deciduous and riparian woodlands
box height: 3-20 feet
Northern Flicker
pastures, groves, woodlots, orchards, fields,
meadows, woodland clearings, forest edges, urban
parks, on pole or tree at forest edge or along
fence rows bordering crop fields; box should be
completely filled with wood chips or shavings.
entrance hole should face southeast
box height: 6-30 feet
Tree Swallow
open fields near water, expansive open areas,
marshes, meadows, wooded swamps; on a post in
open areas near tree or fence, 30-100 feet apart.
entrance hole should face east
box height: 5-15 feet
Violet-green Swallow
open or broken deciduous or mixed
deciduous-coniferous forests, wooded canyons,
edges of dense forest
box height: 9-15 feet
Tufted Titmouse
deciduous forest, thick timber stands, woodland
clearings, forest edges, woodlots, riparian and
mesquite habitats; spaced one box per 8 acres,
hole should face away from prevailing wind
box height: 5-15 feet
Black-capped Chickadee
forests, woodlots, and yards with mature hardwood
trees, forest edges, meadows, area should receive
40-60% sunlight, spaced one box per 10 acres,
hole should face away from prevailing wind;
1" shaving can be placed in box
box height: 5-15 feet
Carolina Chickadee
forests, woodlots, and yards with mature hardwood
trees, forest edges, meadows, area should receive
40-60% sunlight, hole should face away from
prevailing wind; 1" shaving can be placed in
box
box height: 5-15 feet
Mountain Chickadee
coniferous forests, forest edges, woodland
clearings; hole should face away from prevailing
wind; 1" shaving can be placed in box
box height: 5-15 feet
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
coniferous forests, mixed deciduous-coniferous
forests, forest edges, woodlands, thickets,
burned areas, often near streams; hole should
face away from prevailing wind; 1" shaving
can be placed in box
box height: 5-15 feet
White-breasted Nuthatch
deciduous woodlands, mature forests, woodlots,
near open areas, forest edges, orchards, often
near water; hole should face away from prevailing
wind; 1" shaving can be placed in box
box height: 5-20 feet
Red-breasted Nuthatch
mixed coniferous-deciduous forests, shrub lands,
swamps, farmlands, suburban parks; hole should
face away from prevailing wind; 1" shaving
can be placed in box
box height: 5-15 feet
Brown-headed Nuthatch
open stands of pine-hardwood forests, clearings
scattered with dead trees, forest edges, burned
areas, cypress swamps
box height: 5-20 feet
House Wren
variety of habitats, farmland, openings, open
forests, forest edges, shrub lands, suburban
gardens, parks, backyards; near trees or tall
shrubs
box height: 5-10 feet
Carolina Wren
forests with thick underbrush, forest edges,
woodland clearings, open forests, shrub lands,
suburban gardens, parks, backyards; near trees or
tall shrubs
box height: 5-10 feet
Prothonotary Warbler
lowland hardwood forests subject to flooding,
stagnant water, swamps, ponds, marshes, streams,
flooded river valleys, wet bottomlands; box
should be over or near water
box height: 2-12 feet
Hooded Merganser
quiet, shallow, clear water pools surrounded by
or near the edge of deciduous woods: small forest
pools, ponds, swamps; add 3" of wood
shavings
box height: 6-25 feet