Barry's Corner: Bird boxes

Contributed By Barry Clugston

Barry Clugston.

Trees with useable hollows can be completely consumed by a bush fire or knocked over by a wind and lost as a nesting possibility.

To develop new hollows in a growing tree takes many years as many as 100.

First a branch needs to tear off in a wind or snow lands on the tree or the tree gets overwhelmed and the breaks apart.

Then insects make their homes in the sap wood.

With all this activity the branches get weakened and will drop to the ground.

The fallen branch creates cover for birds like the Bush Stone Curlew and reptiles like geckoes, stumpy tail and goannas.

Some parrots can help the hollow by scratching the rotted tree core to make a hollow.

Many of the birds make use of a nest site year after year and it will be visited nearly every day during the off season.

Here is the chance to try a nest box.

Possums and larger parrots need a hollow about a metre deep. and an entrance near the top.

Do not worry too much about a roof the birds are able to live without one. They can also live with some swaying.

The structure does not need to be insulated however siting for summer shade is helpful.

Most bird boxes are made from sawn timber but I have tried teapots with great success.

Tip it on its side and attach a spout ten to 15 cm long with a perch on the end.

Spouts of poly pipe can work but no larger than 19mm otherwise sparrows can take over.

This size suits pardalotes and bigger birds will fit into more space.

Boxes fit for galahs can be taken over by swarming bees but varroa might straighten that problem.

A nest box needs to be robust because it will get blasted by all types of weather.

Height above the ground is not important because the fledglings flutter to the ground and land fairly softly.

Help with a nest box can be a great help to reestablish the bird complex.

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