Having just finished muscling around a huge amount of wet
heavy snow for the second time in two days, I’m indoors
recovering, cleansing my mind by thinking of bluebirds. The
sight of their incredible beauty and sound of their wonderful
songs is food for the soul. I’d rather have a saw and hammer in
my hands, building some bluebird nest boxes, than a snow shovel
any day of the year!
Growing up during the 1930’s and 40’s and spending a lot of
time on my grandparents’ farm, I never once saw an eastern
bluebird there. My dad was born and raised on that farm west of
Slovan and he could recall that, as a boy, at least one family of
bluebirds nested each summer in one of the hollowed-out cedar
fence posts along their driveway within 75 feet of their house.
Eastern bluebirds took a terrible nose-dive in population
during my growing-up period due to fierce competition for nesting
cavities from especially the house sparrows and European
starlings. Couple that with an enormous use of bad herbicides
and pesticides and other factors, it took quite a few years
before the bluebirds began making a comeback.
It was during the1950’s and 1960’s that a move was begun to
help the bluebirds by building nest boxes and establishing
bluebird trails. During the early 1960’s I talked my dad into
helping build a lot of nest boxes according to the generally
accepted plan that was circulating at the time. It called for a
bottom that was five inches by five inches. My dad took one look
at the plan and immediately suggested decreasing the floor area
by making the bottom around 3 and a half-inches by 4 inches.
He made a small circle with his hands indicating what he
recalled was the size of the nesting cavity in the top of one of
the rotted-out cedar fence posts, and that’s what prompted us to
change the "official" plans. As I recall we made
around 375 bluebird boxes and had incredibly good luck with them.
One series of 16 boxes spaced around 100 yards apart along the
Kewaunee-Green Bay and Western railroad tracks bordering the
Kewaunee River near Clyde, south of Slovan, in which eight
bluebird families were successfully raised for the first brood
and seven for the second brood.
After trying out quite a few different plans for making houses
for bluebirds in recent years I finally came upon what I think is
the best we’ve ever tried. Charlotte and I attended the Bluebird
Restoration Assoc. of Wisconsin annual meeting in 2002 and one of
the presenters had learned of a very successful bluebird house
used by some people in Kentucky. I built one of the nest boxes,
set it up according to directions, and a pair of eastern
bluebirds successfully raised two broods of young, each one being
four in number. What impressed us was that the adults used
the same nest for the second brood, and the cleanliness of the
box, following the raising of eight young, was quite remarkable.
I strongly recommend using rough-sawn seven-eighths-inch-thick
western red cedar for the boxes. Ask for eight-inch-wide boards
– they will actually be seven and a quarter inches wide – perfect
for the dimensions of the box. The front is 7 1/8 inches high
and 5 ¾ inches wide. The two sides are 7 1/8 inches high
and 4 inches wide. Make the back 7 1/8 inches high and 5 ¾
inches wide. The top will be 7 1/8 inches wide and 8 ¾ inches
long. Cut a shallow saw kerf on the underside of the top, a
quarter of an inch in from the front. This "dip line"
will prevent rain from running off the top and into the entrance.
The bottom is 4 inches by 4 inches. Cut small wedges off the
corners of the bottom (around ¼ inch wide) for drainage.
Here are the directions for making the entrance on the front
piece. Mark 1 5/8 inches down from the top on each side.
Connect those two points with a light pencil line. Now measure
in 2 7/8 inches from the edge along the line and mark that spot.
Here is the center for the 1 ¼ inch hole you will drill. I use a
brace and an expansion bit to drill the hole. Clamp the front on
top of an old piece of scrap lumber, then drill the hole.
Once the hole is drilled, use a small saw such as a coping
saw to saw down from the top, in exact line with the sides of the
hole, thereby removing the wood directly above the hole. You
will end up with a "U"-shaped hole that is 1 ¼ inches
wide. Even though the usual bluebird nest box plan calls for a
hole that is 1 ½ inches wide, the birds manage the smaller hole
very well. Placing the entrance near the very top of the front
should entirely eliminate house sparrows from using the box.
Sand and round off the edges of the entrance opening. The bottom
of the opening should be 4 inches above the floor. It’s been
found that bluebirds prefer a smaller and shallower nest box than
many plans call for. Do not drill ventilation holes in the box.
They are not needed. I will elaborate on this point in my
next-week story.
I suggest gluing and nailing the sides, front and bottom
together using a good weatherproof glue. The top is hinged to
the back. Slide a small piece of sandpaper between the top ends
of the back before fastening the top to it with the hinge. This
tiny space will make the top open and close better if weathering
causes the top to warp a little. A small wood screw fastened
near the top and front of one of the sides and another screw
fastened on the side of the top near the front will enable you to
easily use a short piece of wire to close the box.
One of the best ways to put up a nest box is to start with a
five-foot piece of half-inch "rebar" (concrete
reinforcing rod, bought at a lumber yard). Pound that part way
into the ground – at least a foot and a half if you can. Next,
mount your box to a half-inch piece of electrical conduit pipe
using two half-inch conduit clamps. I mount the house so it
tilts slightly forward with the entrance facing north. Now slide
the box, mounted to the pipe, over the "rebar."
In case you’re interested in more detailed plans and
suggestions, send $2 to Roy Lukes, Nature-Wise, PO Box 105, Egg
Harbor, WI, 54209. Now’s the time to get some bluebird nest
boxes made. Someone up there will like you!
This relatively small, easy-to-build next box
was used by a family of bluebirds last summer to raise two broods,
each with four young.
This column appeared in the Door County Advocate
on 02/28/2004.
© Copyright 2004 Roy Lukes. All rights reserved.
