Bird box camera

Alan
I have an RSPB vertical box attached to a shed, which has power inside so I thought this was the ideal place for my Garden Nature wireless side view box. Blue Tits use it every year and it is fitted with one of those metal plates that restrict hole size to I think 1.25 inches. I have removed the existing box and replaced it with the new side view box and at present a Blue Tit has taken up nightly residence immediately. Maybe this is because it is in the same location as the previous box, I don't know but it certainly isn't bothered about shape.

The light from the frosted plastic panel is something I was going to modify by blanking it out with either tape or a wooden panel and removing it once the nest was established and young hatched but this Blue Tit doesn't seem bothered. Having said that, it is entering at dusk when light is fading so maybe light from the plastic panel is minimal and of no consequence so I think I will still blank the panel off temporarily.

I have an old RSPB box with camera and a plastic frosted panel on each side. No birds ever nested in it for many years until I replaced the plastic panels with plywood and hey presto, Tree Sparrows nested in it followed by Blue Tits last year so I think all the light does seem to be a deterrent. Have you noticed that the Green Feathers version of this side view box does not have a plastic panel and the hole is offset further left than the Garden Nature version. They recommend one of their led lights that only operate in low light conditions. In one of their comments somewhere, they do not favour the plastic panels on the basis that the sunlight through the panel can cause the nest box to become too hot. I would definitely blank the panels off because it certainly worked in my case.

Hi David (Blue-7)Thanks for reading my first thread and replying to it.
Like yourself I too replaced my side view nest box where the vertical one was and I've covered the light opening not with plywood but with a tight woven mesh which still allows enough light to come through to get the colour picture. My Neighbour has kindly moved her nest box further away and isn't in view of mine now.
I've also noticed that the blue tits were on my feeders today which are only three metres away from the nest box (a good sign) I know there's still plenty of time to go before they'll be nesting.
I'm still thinking that the blue tits may not like the amount of work they’ll have to do to build up the nest from the base.
For all I know they may already have been in the nest box without me seeing them but I have no way of recording the activities.
The camera system I have is the AHD-NB04-TXRX Wireless AHD Camera Nest Box System which I bought from Garden Nature.
Do you or anyone else have an idea how I could connect this system up through a dvd recorder with a hard drive to the smart tv so I'd be able to record the activities going on in the nest box.
Help would be appreciated.
Thanks again
Tarka9289 (Alan)

Hi Alan

That is the same  system that I just purchased, I am actually having a problem with it at the moment, the picture was good initially but is now flickering accompanied by an occasional loud 'cracking' noise from the RX Receiver.  I have unplugged it overnight and will power it up again today to see if it is maybe an overheating problem, in which case I will have to return it.

I am not sure how to connect it to a dvd recorder, from memory I suppoose you would connect the RX HDMI cable to your DVD HDMI 'IN' port and DVD HDMI 'OUT' cable to an HDMI port on your TV"?

A better way to record is using a recording program on your PC or laptop, I use Power Director.  In the event that you may consider using your pc / laptop,  I will explasin the problem that I initially encountered.  I assumed I could just connect the RX HDMI cable to my laptop instead of TV and I would be able to capture the video with my Power Director editing program but it couldn't see it.  I contacted Garden Nature for advice but they were slow in replying so I tried to find my own solution.

I diiscovered that the HDMI ports on laptops are outgoing ports only and will not respond to incoming data.  USB ports can receive incoming data so  I looked for a connection wire with USB connection on one end and HDMI female port on the other end.  I eventually found one that Gamers use so ordered it and it works perfectly, it seems to convert a USB port to an incoming data HDMI port.  It cost £16.99 on Amazon but it is now £17.99 ... probably increased the price as a result of my glowing review!  It is listed as a "Amozo 4K HDMI Video Capture Card, USB 3.0 Game Capture Card 1080P Capture Adapter for Streaming" and you can find it here:

You might find a cheaper one, maybe  without the USB / mini USB converter that I didn't need, but at least you know this one works

The benefit of using a recording program is that you can edit out sections where there is little or no activity in the nestbox.  Hope this helps

David

Hi David,

The flickering as happened twice with mine, but just by unplugging the RX Receiver from the mains and leaving it for a few minutes and then reconnecting solved the problem. I've had no crackling though. I hope yours is back to working order.

I've just ordered the product you gave me the link to. It's just what I wanted, so thank you. do you use the free Power Director or did you buy the professional version?.  I'll connect it to my PC as I see it works with windows 7.

Have you got any of Green Feathers cameras with the LED lights, if so, do you rate them to give a good quality colour picture, with a fully enclosed box except the entrance hole?

Again, thanks for your help and advice.

Alan

Hi Alan

Thanks for that information, I did wonder if the RX was overheating so unplugged it last night and when I switched it back on again this morning it was providing a stable image.  Reading your comments it would seem that the receivers have issues if powered up for long periods.  The noise was similar to the noise of an element popping in a light bulb.

I have used PD12 for a long time, I do a lot of video recording using Gopro camera/s mounted on a sports car and I burn the final films to DVD.  A few years ago I upgraded to PD18, there aren't many startling differences, probably the best being to be able to burn or save in H264 format but one very useful facility is 'Cyberlink Screen Recorder' which allows you to record anything displayed on your screen.  The problem now is that Cyberlink want you to buy their 365 version which is a subscription version so you are trapped into a monthly subscription for updates and no doubt the subscription rates would increase over time.

There is a free version of PD17, you get the full version for 30 days, after which, the trial ends and only essential functions are available, and videos are limited to 720p. If you have a free bundled version installed you just click on the 'Capture' tab and your camera should be seen highlighted as 'capture from TV signal'.  

I actually have a Green Feathers camera installed as a replacement for an old RSPB nestbox camera, which stopped working.  I needed a quick replacement because the nest was being constructed so I bought it on Amazon where a lot of reviews criticised sound quality but I bought it and it is being replaced by a Garden Nature camera which is arriving tomorrow.  This is the camera

This is a video shot with the camera showing the last day of my Blue Tit family and only light from the  entrance hole

Also arriving next week is a Green Feathers wifi camera with side view nest box, as discussed above on page 1.  This setup could be a challenge to record the video direct on to my laptop as it seems to be aimed at Apple iOS and Android smart phones.  By default I assume it records to your smart phone or an on board sd card in the camera.  However, I am sure I can find some way of recording to my laptop and one advantage of this system is that it seems to have a motion sensor to alert you when there is movement in the box.  It seems a bit of overkill to have three different types of cameras in 3 nest boxes but last year I was disappointed that I couldn't film Great Tits that had nested in the box that this Green Feathers kit will replace.

I am a glutten for punishment because I also have an RSPB Trail / Trap camera to film the badgers in the garden.  I constructed a wildlife pond during the covid lockdown period which has been a remarkable wildlife attraction, frogspawn, Dragoflies and Damselflies, I never knew the difference between the two before they came to the pond.  Best of all was one of the badgers drinking from the pond, which is at the end of this video

David

Well I installed the Greenfeathers wifi camera in their side view nest box, it wasn't straightforward but I got there eventually.  I have had to make some minor repairs and modifications to their nestbox but I am very impressed with the end result.  My wife and I can view the stream on both our Android phones and also on her iOS tablet, after installing the Greenfeathers app.  I now have 3 nestboxes with cameras, one hard wired, one wireless and this latest one wifi.  The most impressive and convenient is the Greenfeathers wifi system because it is so convenient to connect straight to the box with the phone. the motion alerts can be a bit intrusive but there are three levels of sensitivity as well as switching off motion notifications.

I have replaced an existing box with this new box and hoping it would not discourage Great Tits that have always used the old box.  After connecting up the cable and securing the front of the box I went into the house to check the connection with our phones and to our utter astonishment a Great Tit was in the box inspecting it!  What it doesn't seem to like is the light from the rather large drain holes you can see in the corners so I will block them up with some moss tomorrow to prevent the liight getting in.  Here are some photos:

The Great Tit is in the box at present, roosting overnight

I am so impressed that you have a visitor already!! Glad you like the system!

I think it (probably she) has been roosting in the old box and it is remarkable that change of box has made no difference so long as it is in the same location.  Here is a short video of it inspecting the box, it should have no problem attracting a mate when it has a secure house with CCTV :)

Hi David,

Is that the video quality you get without the additional light you can buy. Before I ring Green Feathers do you think their cameras (Green Feathers)  would run on the Garden Nature wireless system I have.

I bought the device you told me about and it's great for recording the activity but unfortunately, the blue tit has only had a sniff at the hole entrance but not gone in. I'm sure it has something to do with the light hole above that's putting them off.

So that's why I'm thinking of buying a Green Feather camera and closing off the light and connecting the power line to that. Otherwise I've wasted money buying the wireless system.

Hi Alan
Yes that video was taken without the led lights illuminated. I bought the lights and I have fitted them but they are quite bright and I thought they may discourage birds from nesting so presently they are turned off which is achieved by just putting the cap over the light sensitive lens that protrudes from the box. If the Great Tit nests in the box I will remove the cap once the young have hatched. I will take a couple of photos of the box one with and one without the leds illuminated and post them later this afternoon.

No the Green Feathers wifi camera will not run on your system, you have a stand alone transmitter and receiver that do not connect to your router, they just communicate with each other. The Green Feathers unit that I just bought is wifi transmission that connects to the internet via a router.

If I was you I would definitely cover the perspex window temporarily, either black insulation tape or some plywood or roofing felt and remove it once the young have hatched.

The Green Feathers led light should work with your system, you can buy the light on its own, I think they are £15, they have male and female connectors that just plug in between the camera power supply and also the light sensor that hangs outside the box that can be turned on and off by removing or replacing the cap. I have been thinking about buying a couple myself, to fit in the other two boxes.