Nesting birds – honest!

So after working hard over winter to complete the first year of our Glastir Entry tasks (which is all about helping wildlife and conservation) we erected 25 beautifully hand crafted bird boxes made precisely to the Glastir specification using untreated wood and tops that open to let you clean out debris.

collection of wooden bird boxes

Steve made the bird boxes on my dining room table – as you do – yet another consequence of the year-long delay in getting our barn (thanks for that planners). He added little metal plates to the holes so that they aren’t re-purposed for woodpeckers and the lids were hinged using bike inner tubes (thanks to Mikes Bikes in Pendergast for these).

bird box on a wooden table

We put the boxes up just before Christmas 2014 – you put them a few metres high with the hole facing north or east in a location where there’s a clear view up to the box.

birdboxtree

Then we waited for spring. Meanwhile I refurbished our honesty box on the gate. Someone had knocked the top off it. Now we don’t sell HUGE amounts from the gate – we empty the box regularly and usually its only a few quid – but I guess kids must have thought to break into it overnight (not that they found anything – he he). So when spring finally sprung I started to get ready to put flowers on the gate for sale and uh-oh I realised that the pesky birds had decided the Honesty Box rather than the new bird boxes was where they were making home! Although the box is fixed to the gate and swings open and shut throughout the day (ie north and east) the little tom-tits had thought this was great…

chicks nesting

I made an alternative box and put a sign on this one saying please don’t post your money here – birds nesting! I just managed to snap a picture before they fledged – but wow – they were quick!

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