Sparrow-Resistant Bluebird Houses Do they exist?

Table Of Content

• Tip #7: Don’t drill your entrance hole too low.
• The only time you don’t want to open up a nest box is when the nestlings are about 12-14 days old.
• What kind of house do bluebirds like?

If a bluebird house is too low, predators like snakes, raccoons, and cats might be more tempted to reach into the box. To avoid this, mount your bluebird house at least five feet off the ground to deter climbing predators. Just remember that placing the nest box in and around an open area will be important for attracting bluebirds. In this article, I’ll go through some basic guidelines for where to put up a bluebird house. I’ll also answer some questions you might be asking as you decide on the best nest box location in your own yard. Their main habitat is evergreen forests, but they are also known to frequent campgrounds, parks and backyards in their range.

Tip #7: Don’t drill your entrance hole too low.

The most effective method though is to install a sparrow spooker after the first egg has been laid. They are available for purchase (no affiliation), or you can make your own. If the house is mounted on a solitary pole, you can also consider protecting it with an 8″ stove pipe baffle or squirrel baffle. An 8″ stove pipe baffle is fairly easy to fabricate and low cost (~$15). As an added bonus a stove pipe baffle can be effective at stopping snakes. I like the one pictured above because it includes copper around the entrance hole, which makes it impossible for any mammal to chew to enlarge the hole.

The only time you don’t want to open up a nest box is when the nestlings are about 12-14 days old.

A good rule-of-thumb when setting up your nest box is to mount it with the entrance hole at eye-level. This is a good way to keep the box about five feet off the ground. The Bluebird Society recommends attaching your bluebird box to a smooth round pipe, such as a 3/4-inch electrical conduit, rather than on a tree or fence. Conduit straps attached to the back work well for mounting. For extra protection from predators, put hardware cloth under the box to deter snakes.

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Posted: Fri, 05 Jan 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

What kind of house do bluebirds like?

You can find the tree swallow in fields and wetlands throughout the state of California. This songbird are covered in bluish green feathers with a white belly and throat. Take a look below and enjoy the journey as we travel down the path of All Things Bluebirds. Find out which species are present in your area and build one a home.

Pinyon jays travel together in flocks where they constantly kaw at each other to keep in touch and communicate within the group. As their name suggests, the seeds of pinyon pine trees are their favorite food source. They are well known for hiding large quantities of these seeds to eat later, using their excellent memory to keep track of all their hiding places.

Xbox Bluebird House by Nest box builder

To further deter predators, mount your nest box on a metal pole, and consider installing a stovepipe-style baffle under the nest box. If there aren’t many low perches in your yard or in the area around your nest box, you could add in some make-shift perches. Drive a few 4′ metal stakes in the ground in the 50 foot area around your nest box. You could even stick some other object into the ground, like a pitchfork (that’s what I did once).

Additionally, at the end of each nesting season, you should empty out the nest and brush out any material that is present. You may wish to take down the nest box at this time, as sometimes mice may build their own nest in the box. Also, if desired, there are disinfectants available for use on birdhouses that will not harm the birds but sterilize the wood. To protect nest boxes from bears, hang them very high (10′) on wooden walls of a barn or shed.

In the past, bluebirds relied on woodpeckers and other cavity-dwellers to provide the majority of their nesting places. They’d select abandoned cavities in dead trees or rotten fence posts to raise their families. As development wiped out many of these natural nesting sites, the bluebird population declined dramatically.

They are fun to watch swooping across a field on their hunt for insects and berries. We've made this site to make it easier to learn everything you need to know about your favorite songbird species. Our mission is to educate people about songbirds and provide the best resources to help them identify them and contribute to conservation efforts. Vianna Arenas is a lifetime songbird enthusiast and nature lover. An avid backyard birdwatcher, Vianna loves gardening and creating a backyard oasis for the wildlife native to her home state of Texas. When she’s not camping or hiking with her family, she can be found sewing critter bags for orphaned wildlife.

This nest box has been shown over and over again to deter house sparrows and be attractive to bluebirds, specifically eastern bluebirds. I personally have used this type of nest box in areas where we’ve had persistent house sparrow problems. For eastern and western bluebirds, this would be my first choice. Click here to see where you can get your own Gilbertson bluebird house on my Recommended Tools page.

This article has all the information that you are looking for to locate the most ideal product for your own unique setting. This way, you can determine each product’s benefits and shortcomings before deciding to pay for them. Cleaning and maintaining a bluebird house are two important things in birdwatching. This is highly important to prevent spread of bird-related diseases especially if the birdhouse is near your residence. If you are doing a bluebird house DIY project, you need to make sure that you use earthly colors when staining the bird house.