The Birdhouse Book: Building, Placing, and Maintaining Great Homes for Great Birds

by Margaret A. Barker, Elissa Ruth Wolfson, National Audubon Society

Overview

The Birdhouse Book is the most authoritative book available for creating safe, sturdy, and easy-to-build homes for many of North America’s favorite birds. This updated edition includes important new and timely topics including impacts of climate change on birds, nestbox monitoring for community science, native plants, and how birders can help birds.

Written with those who truly want the best for birds, The Birdhouse Book explains how to build and place functional DIY bird homes that are safe and appropriate for more than 20 classic North American species, from wrens to raptors. Each of the easy-to-build boxes and shelves within is accompanied by cut lists, specially created line diagrams, and step-by-step photography, making the projects accessible to those with even the most rudimentary woodworking skills. In addition, this practical and beautifully presented guide is packed with color photography and information about the bird species covered: Wrens, Warblers, Bluebirds, Flycatchers, Swallows, Titmice, Owls, Flickers, Kestrels, Chickadees, Ducks, Mergansers, Swallows, Doves, Swallows, Robins, Finches, Phoebes, Loons, Swifts, Herons, and Ospreys.

Detailed information will help you properly place and maintain the homes to attract birds. And because these projects are the product of years of experience and field-testing, you can be sure you’re getting the best advice regarding proper design, safe construction materials, and correct home placement to mitigate exposure to elements, pests, and predators. Finally, beyond the birdhouses, you’ll find out how you can contribute to the larger birding community and even enhance your birding experience.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780760368626
Publisher:	Cool Springs Press
Publication date:	06/15/2021
Edition description:	2nd ed.
Pages:	176
Sales rank:	180,805
Product dimensions:	10.30(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.65(d)

About the Author

Margaret A. Barker, a Chesapeake Bay–area writer and educator, grew up watching feeder birds in East Tennessee thanks to her bird-loving mother and grandmother. Covering environmental stories during a broadcast journalism career in the southeast, including at WGST, Atlanta, led to an MS degree via the Audubon Expedition Institute and an internship with Audubon’s Washington, DC, office. She managed the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Project FeederWatch and later the Kids Growing Food school garden program for Cornell’s Department of Education. She writes for newspapers and magazines, and she is co-author of Birding Adventures for Kids, The Birdhouse Book, The FeederWatcher’s Guide to Bird Feeding, and Feeding Wild Birds in America.

Elissa Wolfson has written and edited numerous environmental, botanical, ornithological, and veterinary publications. After graduating from Cornell University, she worked as an environmental educator for a decade, earned an MS degree, and transitioned into environmental journalism. Her clients include the National Audubon Society and Cornell University’s Laboratory of Ornithology and College of Veterinary Medicine. She is former editor of E, The Environmental Magazine, and Cornell Plantations Magazine, current editor of Rationality and Society, author of 101 Cool Games for Cool Cats, and co-author of Birding Adventures for Kids, The Birdhouse Book, and the American Museum of Natural History Pocket Birds of North America, Eastern and Western Regions.

Table of Contents

Foreword 6

Introduction Woodpeckers: The Original Birdhouse Builders 8

Acknowledgments 9

Chapter 1 Many Birds Need a Helping Hand 10

Climate Change Impacts Birds 12

Gardening for Birds 20

Chapter 2 Build Homes to Benefit Birds 22

Just Visiting! Migratory Birds Use Nest Boxes Too 36

Chapter 3 Birds in Boxes 38

Wrens (Bewick's, Carolina, House) 40

Warblers (Prothonotary) 46

Bluebirds (Eastern, Western, Mountain) 52

Flycatchers (Ash-throated, Great Crested) 63

Swallows (Tree, Violet-green) 65

Titmice (Tufted, Oak, Juniper, Black-crested) 67

Nest Box Innovations Old and New 70

Owls (Barred) 72

Owls (Eastern Screech, Western Screech) 79

Flickers (Northern) 86

Owls (Barn) 92

Kestrels (American) 99

Bird Heroes 107

Chickadees (Black-capped, Carolina, Mountain) 109

Ducks (Wood Duck) 116

Mergansers (Hooded) 122

Swallows (Purple Martin) 124

Roost Boxes for Colder Months 130

Chapter 4 Birds Outside of Boxes 132

Doves (Mourning) 134

Swallows (Barn) 138

Robins (American) 141

Finches (House) 146

Birdhouses in Science and Education 148

Phoebes (Eastern, Say's) 150

Owls (Burrowing) 152

Loons (Common) 155

Swifts (Chimney) 157

Herons (Great Blue) 160

Ospreys 163

Chapter 5 How to Help the Birds 166

Bibliography 172

Index 173

About the Team 176

List of Building Plans

Carolina Wren nest box 43

Prothonotary Warbler nest box 48

Xbox (for bluebirds, flycatchers, swallows, and titmice) 58

Barred Owl nest box 74

Screech-Owl nest box 82

Bower Flicker box 88

Barn Owl nest box 94

American Kestrel nest box 102

Chickadee nest box 112

Wood Duck nest box (for Wood Ducks and Hooded Mergansers) 118

Purple Martin gourd rack 127

Mourning Dove nest basket 136

Barn Swallow L-shaped platform 140

V-shaped shelf (for American Robins, House Finches, and Phoebes) 142

Covered shelf (for American Robins, House Finches, and Phoebes) 144