Citizen science boxers fight climate change

bluti 057e (nestbox, pull) (Christine M Matthews) (A)-200px.jpg

Thanks to the amazing efforts of BTO volunteers, who have been monitoring nests for over 75 years, we know that the breeding season in the UK is advancing, with many species of birds laying their eggs up to 30 days earlier than they did in the mid-1960s. The 18th National Nest Box Week (NNBW), which runs from 14-21 February, encourages people to put up nest boxes, providing the ideal opportunity to contribute to this long-running national study.

Dr Dave Leech, a Senior Research Ecologist at the BTO, picks up the story. “We know that increasing spring temperatures are driving this trend, but what are the repercussions? Are earlier breeding birds able to keep pace with their insect prey, the appearance of which is also advanced by the warming climate?  Or do they still miss the boat, leading to starvation of the chicks?”

“In order to answer these questions, we urgently need people to monitor nests of common birds, particularly in gardens where data on breeding attempts are surprisingly scarce. As well as providing a suitable site in a world where suitable cavities are becoming scarce, nest boxes provide an ideal opportunity to record the progress of the eggs and young. So, while putting up a box may have some local benefit, collecting data on what's inside for BTO helps bird populations far beyond the boundaries of your own garden, and National Nest Box Week is the ideal time to get involved.”

Hazel Evans, who runs the BTO’s Nest Box Challenge, an on-line survey where members of the public can submit data about nesting attempts, commented, “Preliminary results from 2014 suggest that, after two poor breeding seasons, Blue and Great Tits had a better year and the winter hasn’t been too harsh so we’re hoping for a good uptake of boxes this spring. If you put one up during National Nest Box Week, you can use Next Box Challenge to record whether it is occupied, how many eggs the birds lay and how many chicks they rear. The project originally focused on boxes, but you can now record all nests, so look out for Blackbirds, Collared Doves and Woodpigeons too.”

To find out more about nest boxes and how you can record what happens in your nest box visit http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/nbc

Here are Hazel’s five top tips for putting up a nest box.

1. Wherever possible try and put the box up with the entrance hole facing north, or north-east. This will ensure that the nest box is not in full sunlight for most of the day, helping to keep incubating parents and growing chicks cool.
    
2. Think about the location carefully, close to the top of a wall where cats might be able to access the box should be avoided, and do not put one too close to a feeding station, visiting birds could well put off a prospecting pair.
    
3. The height from the ground for a nest box varies with species. House Sparrows seem to prefer a higher nest box, close to the eaves if fitting on a building, similarly Starlings, although these will use next boxes located on trees too. For Blue and Great Tits, head height is high enough as long as tip 2 is followed. Open-fronted boxes, preferred by Robins can be located low to the ground in cover but locate higher if the garden is visited by cats.
    
4. If making your own box use wood in excess of 15mm in thickness – this will ensure the box doesn’t warp and change shape and also provide insulation when it is cool and helps to keep the box cooler when it is warm. Different species need a different size entrance hole.
   Starling – 45mm
   House Sparrow – 32mm
   Great Tit – 28mm
   Blue Tit – 25mm
   Robin – open-fronted
    
5. Consider fitting an easily removeable lid, or one that you can open to view your nest box. This will make it easier to record what is happening in your nest box, should you want to, and make it easier to clean out at the end of the season.

Share this page