Spring cleaning in the nest box

jetpenny · #1 (**permalink**) 03-06-2011, 07:22 PM

I'm celebrating this year as after years of trying I finally got some Blue Tits nesting in my box. Now the youngsters have fledged I'll be thinking about cleaning the box out later on, perhaps nearer the end of the Summer. Does anyone know whether it's better to put the nest back after cleaning, or remove it?

the poacher · #2 (**permalink**) 03-06-2011, 07:37 PM

my tits just fledged the box yesterday,today i noticed it crawling with large black ants,my garden is full of them, great for green woodpeckers,the closest iv been to it for a while,may i suggest,if you clean it,put it back up,it could be a home for bats or a second generation of birds such as a robin,not to late yet.

Podgod · #3 (**permalink**) 03-06-2011, 09:22 PM

From the RSPB website.

Use boiling water to kill any remaining parasites, and let the box dry out thoroughly before replacing the lid. Insecticides and flea powders must not be used.

Unhatched eggs in the box, can only be removed legally between August and January - and must then be disposed of.

If you place a small handful of clean hay or wood shavings (not straw) in the box once it is thoroughly dry after cleaning, small mammals may hibernate there, or birds may use it as a roost site.

It is quite normal for a few eggs to fail to hatch, or for some young to die. Blue and great tits lay up to 14 eggs to allow for such losses. Cold weather and food shortage may lead to nest desertion, or to only the strongest young surviving. The death of one parent or interference from animals or humans may also cause desertion.