nest box for blackbirds

Hi folks,

I want to build a nest box for blackdirds. No problem, you think! However i have fields at the back of my house and last year a Sparrow Hawk or something similar, killed a blackbird in my garden. I also have numerous Magpies who i have seen taking chicks from nests (very distressing) and i also have numerous squrrells. So you see, the odds are stacked against the poor Blackbirds. Can anyone suggest a design for a nest box which would incorporate a panel at the front so that predators could not enter. I have seen "open plan" boxes that resemble Alpine lodges but they offer no resistance to attacks. Ques. Could i make a larger nest box with an appropriate size hole for blackbirds to access. I really would like to help these poor persecuted birds.

  • Hi I've just been googling the same thing! I know it's nature and they all have their babies to feed but I thought if I put out enough food then I can stop the predators maybe.
    I was wondering on getting a hogitat type thing or ground protection like the cage that you can get for ground feeding birds. Maybe incorporate both somehow so that rounded blackbirds can get in to safety but not magpie etc. I can't seem to find any advice though xx