What To Look For When Buying A Birdhouse
This is the time of year when many people look to place a birdhouse in their backyard. People want to attract specific birds and enjoy the lively birdcalls and flash of color that makes these feathered friends so desirable. The problem is you can search the web for a birdhouse, find several thousand offerings, but do you know what to look for? There are some things that birds look for in a home and I’m going to cover the most important ones in this article. Now, some birds simply will not nest in a birdhouse. Many bird species build on the ground, or in swampy areas or some other particular setting. You will never attract those birds to a birdhouse no matter what you do. Luckily, many attractive north American songbirds do like to use a birdhouse and this article is about those. So, just what kind of qualities does a bird look for in a birdhouse?
We’ve all seen some birds nesting in the sign at the local grocery store or even in guardrails along the highway. They’ve chosen these spots, not necessarily because of their convenience, but because they offer enough floor space to build the size of nest that species prefers. A good birdhouse will be designed for a specific species of bird and that includes the floor space available for their particular nest. An area that is too small will be bypassed and one that is too large will be discouraging to the type of bird you’re trying to attract.
The second quality of a birdhouse is the height of the entrance hole above the floor. Too high and it would be difficult for the baby birds to get to the hole to leave the nest. Too close to the floor and this invites predators to attack the eggs and the young chicks. Birds can be very picky about the distance the entry hole is above the floor.
This leads us to the third point which is very important to birds. Nesting birds are looking for protection from predators. They need a house high enough above the ground to give them protection, and the height above the ground varies with the species. They also like a house that itself is sturdy enough to protect the incubating eggs or young birds from predators.
If you talk to a birdhouse builder and ask about the entrance hole of the birdhouse many will say, “It really doesn’t matter. Any bird will use this house.” That’s when you should look elsewhere. While the statement is true it ignores the fact that many birds are driven out of their nesting area by other aggressive birds taking over the birdhouse. This can happen simply because the entrance hole was made generic and not designed for the species you want to attract. You don’t want to put the time, money and effort of attracting birds to your yard to see the birdhouse taken over by another species just because the entrance hole was not designed for the species you wanted.
Thinking of buying a birdhouse? Learn what factors to consider then visit Wolf Mountain Birdhouses to find a birdhouse designed just for the birds you want to attract to your yard.