How To Keep Wrens Out Of Bluebird Houses

One of the most popular methods for preventing house wren invasions into your bluebird or chickadee nest boxes is to add a wren guard after the residing bird has laid at least one egg. Step 5: Block the sight between both nest boxes when possible. Not suitable for a Gilwood box. Avoid slot boxes and gourds, and do not crowd single boxes together.

1. Wren guard for bluebird house of cards
2. Wren guard for bluebird house music
3. Wren guard on bluebird box

Wren Guard For Bluebird House Of Cards

House wrens prefer a home with a diameter of roughly 1 1/8 inches. As you put these nest boxes any closer together, you might start to run into problems. Remember to remove the nesting material far away from the area so that house wrens cannot start rebuilding with it. Daniel has never lost a nest to wrens since using this method. If your wren guard is made of wood, you may be able to unscrew it from the nest box, and slide it back further, which will decrease how low the hood hangs over the opening.

For some reason, House Wrens seldom nest in purple martin nestboxes, which are generally 12 feet or more off the ground. The key to placing your wren guard is to make sure it blocks the view of the nest box entry hole. Try a wren guard DURING EGG LAYING (and do not wait till you hear House Wrens - put it up right after the first egg is laid for boxes near House Wren territory). Also see All About House Wrens, Photos of Nests, Eggs and Young, Another Perspective on House Wrens, Predator ID, VIDEO of HOWR egg attack, video of HOWR removing newborn bluebirds from nest, and Other Brown Birds. Dr. Elliott, BVMS, MRCVS is a veterinarian with over 30 years of experience in veterinary surgery and companion animal practice. The screw holes would be the. Keep in mind that house wren territory may extend beyond 300 feet and that boxes beyond your property may attract house wrens to your area. But if she hasn't, you can move it to a better location. Distance each nest box at least 30 feet apart, if not more. DO NOT PUT A WREN GUARD UP AFTER EGG LAYING IS OVER unless you VERIFY that the parents will enter the box, especially with other species like Tree Swallows! This might also fool the wren into looking at the other, newly provided box.

Wren Guard For Bluebird House Music

Then, when the female wren decides which nesting site she prefers, the male will convert that pile of sticks into an active nest, leaving the rest of the "dummy nests" unused. House wrens prefer areas with lots of thickets, brambles, trees or shrubs. Training bluebirds to use a wren guard (rarely necessary). Available, none of which are 100% effective. A researcher at Michigan State University put plastic "craft store" eggs in a fake nest in a nestbox. Filled to bursting with sticks and twigs? The study by Pribil showed that wren depredation seldom if ever occurs if the other birds' nestbox is closer than 3 to 16 feet of the wren's nest. Fits on Any Bird House. Do not let the nest box holes face each other. Both males and females have been known to destroy unguarded bluebird and other cavity nester's.

You can cut the bottom of the "porch" off so it is easier to attach and so that the Chickadee has access to the wooden door -- but keep the sides and top in place. You could even build a bird house yourself and paint on a black entrance hole instead of cutting in a real hole. ) Try to still mount the box to a metal pole. Sometimes wren guards are less effective.

Wren Guard On Bluebird Box

Wrens can sometimes cause problems for bluebirds because the males build "dummy nests" in multiple places to give their mates multiple options for nesting sites. House wrens have also been known to enter the nests of other birds and poke holes in the eggs, or remove an entire nest from a nest box. The next year, one box was occupied by House Wrens. In our experience, we've found that trimming the front panel so that a little bit of the hole is exposed is helpful. In his quest to attract a mate, he will typically build multiple "dummy nests" in a number of different bird houses and natural cavities. Orthwein Raised Roof nestbox: A raised roof nestbox designed by Bob Orthwein, who also designed the Wren Predator Guard. For smaller nestlings like chickadees and titmice, wait until nestlings are about two weeks old before guard removal.

They are the #1 predator on my trail, and are actually a bigger problem than House Sparrows, because you can't remove active HOWR nests, eggs, young or trap adults. Need to repeatedly remove the sticks and twigs or a dummy nest, or leave the box open or plugged for a week or two. The guard should be made of the same material as the nestbox so that it blends in, but you can also make one of cardboard and plastic in a pinch. Slot, Gilbertson and Gilwood boxes have openings that make it easier for house wrens to fill them with sticks and create dummy nests. Accounts of egg destruction outside of those time frames. Used for nesting, these are called "dummy nests. " Are prolific, curious, and aggressively territorial during nesting. Typically you have to make your own guard since the dimensions will be slightly different for each bird you are looking to protect. Testing: I tried this guard on three boxes. As a result, you'll attract many of them to your yard every year, which will lead to an increase in their local population. The problem with this method is that it may encourage the wren to attempt to claim another nestbox that has other birds actively nesting in it. Remember, house wrens are native to North America, and therefore we have a duty to protect them as well. It was accepted by both the male and female after three attempts and a lot of "Dee-dee-deeing, " and they went on to lay eggs.