I have a bird house which is used each year by a family of blue-tits and has been so used for many years.
So far so good.
I clean it out each November and am about to do so now - if it ever stops persisting down - yet I have frequently seen blue-tits still feeding in the garden although not, as far as I am aware, using the house.
So, can I clean it out now, or will I be disturbing possible residents?
And, as a supplementary question (MPs get them, so why not me?), why clean it out at all? I know that if i'd gone away for the summer and returned home to find it emptied of all contents I'd be more than a tad miffed!
Surely they return to "natural" nests which won't have been cleared out and they seem to survive that regime!
The reason it is important to clean out nest boxes is to rid the box of any parasites that collect in the nest and also to remove dead chicks/unhatched eggs that have been left in the box that would otherwise prove a health risk to the next batch of youngsters. Chances are it isn't the same pair returning year after year but different pairs that are chosing to use the same site as they only live for around three years so you are unlike to get the same birds more than two years in a row. So they aren't likely to be upset at the change as they won't be aware of it.
Birds will roost in nest boxes, and again they can become infested with parasites that live in the box which could potentially reduce their chances of survival over the winter so cleaning out before the really hard weather hits may be a good idea.
There is a scientific paper that found re-using old nests reducedc reproductive success and the condition of the female compared to an empty box - http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=18803067 (Only gives the abstract, need to pay for complete report) so it benefits thed birds not to reuse sites with old nests, however as nest sites are becoming increasingly scarce this could be made a lot harder for the birds to do thus when providing boxes it is a good idea to clean them out.
Millie & Fly the Border Collies
KatTai said: Chances are it isn't the same pair returning year after year but different pairs that are chosing to use the same site as they only live for around three years so you are unlike to get the same birds more than two years in a row.
Chances are it isn't the same pair returning year after year but different pairs that are chosing to use the same site as they only live for around three years so you are unlike to get the same birds more than two years in a row.
They certainly appear to be the same for the last three years, as one of them seems unable to fly into the box without banging into the window several times each and every attempt (the box is above french windows and I get the banging every day!). It perches on a plant right up against the window and then tries to fly vertically up the glass and it never seems to remember that the only time it ever succeeds in getting home is when it stands on the bird feeder and then flies almost directly into it!
If it does that and ventures forth again - it forgets and again tries the vertical take-off!
I confess to some surprise that a bird with such flying or learning difficulties has survived for so long but, unless it is a hereditary trait it is presumably the same bird!
Edit: I should have added my thanks for the response, so: simultaneous apologies and thanks!