Hi Judy,

We wax the roof inside the nest box with some candle wax or a bar of
soap. This makes it too slick for the hornets to build a nest inside
the box, but will not harm the birds that reside in the box. Good
luck and let us know if you have any other questions.

Susan Ford
Puget Sound Bluebird Recovery Project


-----Original Message-----
From: judy mullally <judyemull at yahoo.com>
To: tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Fri, Mar 23, 2012 7:24 am
Subject: [Tweeters] Ideas needed re nest boxes



This year in an unusual twist, my first swallow was a Violet green-
before the Trees have always arrived about a week earlier. In
anticipation, I had offered to clear out my neighbor's nest boxes. He
always gets several pairs of each nesting. But last year several of
the nests failed due to invasion of hornets and or yellow jackets. I
found abandoned chicks, unhatched eggs, and even a dead adult in the
various boxes. Last summer I had noticed the hornet and tried to
eliminate their nests, but this spring discovered active nests in two
already. Fortunately the day was cool enough I was able to destroy
them without getting stung.

Any suggestions how I can keep the hornets from re-establishing nests
in the boxes this year? The top slat/roof of each house is
removable, but I was afraid using any insect repellant spray to deter
them for fear of discouraging or potentially harming the swallows. I
thought about painting the underside of the roof with a glossy paint
so the wasps/hornets couldn't easily attach their nests, but had the
same concerns. Has anyone else dealt with this problem ( hopefully
successfully!)

Judy Mullally- Port Angeeles WA judyemullatyahoodotcom