You might be attracted to birdhouses by the way that they look, but please take into consideration first the needs of the birds.
There are multiple characteristics that would make a birdhouse unsuitable for a bird. Make sure that your house is not plagued by any of them.
The birdhouse may be painted, as long as the inside is not. And the wood should not be treated. No chemicals needed in raising baby birds, please. Next, it must be constructed so that there are no nails or screws or sharp edges sticking out. Nothing that would injure or impale the baby birds.
A nest that easily gets wet and stays wet is also a problem. The roof of the birdhouse should be sloped enough to allow rain to fall off, and the inside should contain some drainage holes. A sealed up birdhouse is also a problem. No caulk, please. There should be adequate ventilation.
In addition, the birdhouse should be able to be opened. Nests need to be removed at the end of the season, and you may want to perform nest checks while the birds are growing.
The opening to the birdhouse should not be too large. Otherwise snakes could use it or large birds could reach inside. (Some large birds and some snakes think that baby birds make for a good dinner, and this poses a problem to the longevity of the babies.)
Even better, the opening to the house should be protected by a predator guard. This is a piece of metal or other hard substance that fits against the entrance. It keeps woodpeckers and squirrels from enlarging the hole.
While small houses may look cute, the house cannot be too small. A group of young birds needs to fit inside and grow almost to adulthood. Therefore, there needs to be enough space.
Until the young birds are old enough to fly, they should not be able to get to the entrance of the birdhouse. That means the entrance way should be four to five inches above the floor of the house.
Once these criteria are met, then you can look at the outside of the house. Do you like the way that it looks? Will it fit in your garden? Does it match the decor? These are all important questions - as long as you first consider that the primary purpose of the birdhouse is to house birds.
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matthew_A._Boreau
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