Subject: RE: Sparrow restrictive openning on bird house (fwd)
Date: Apr 29 16:05:33 1996
From: Irene Wanner - iwanner at u.washington.edu



Last year, the (I think) Kent or Auburn Audubon Society was selling
VG swallow houses, also w/ the oblong opening. They tacked a piece
of flashing up on the front top of the house so birds cd not perch on
the roof and peck little birds when they poked their heads out the hole.
Irene

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 29 Apr 1996 10:18:14 -0700
From: Ed Schulz <eschulz at eldec.com>
Reply-To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Subject: RE: Sparrow restrictive openning on bird house

>Should you mount the swallow house in a location that gets full sun,
>partial sun, or shade? I have a swallow house that gets a good amount
>of sun, but has remained vacant for 2 years?

>Mike Seamans
>Seattle, WA
>a-mikese at microsoft.com

I have had VG swallows in a box every year since I put it up on the west
side of my house right on the SW corner. It gets full sun from about 11
until sunset. If you are worried about heat you might increase the
ventilation in the box. I cut a larger opening in the back of the box and
covered it with a screen and then the box is mounted about an inch away
from the wall of the house. There are fierce battles with sparrows and
house finches early in the season but the swallows seem to prevail. I
think they might need a clear area in front of the house to fly in and out
of. Mine is about 8' off the ground. I put a small microphone in the box
and ran a cable to my stereo which was a lot more fun than I thought it
would be. You can estimate how many chicks there are as they hatch and
hear the ruckus that starts every time one of the parents arrives.
Then when they conk out at night you can hear them passing out one by one
until it is completely quiet.

Ed Schulz
Everett, WA
eschulz at eldec.com