Invest in a love nest
With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, we’re not the only ones looking for love …
Each year, it’s no coincidence that National Nest Box Week gets underway on 14th February. Whilst the romantics amongst us are snuggling up to our loved ones, the birds in our gardens and countryside are hunting for partners and searching for suitable nesting spots in which to raise a family.
You might notice that on sunny winter days, even when it’s cold, birds start to sing. They’re really just warming up for spring – they’re testing their voice and discovering more about potential mates where they might want to settle down. Depending on the weather, I sometimes watch blue tits prospecting the nest boxes in my garden as early as January.
Some birds, such as bullfinches, mate for life but others only stay together for a breeding season and need to find a suitable partner each year to help pass on their genes to the next generation. Whilst there’s quite some time yet before nestlings need feeding, finding the right nest site, building the nest and laying eggs takes a huge amount of energy.
First on the list is finding a partner. Birdsong serves several purposes but at this time of year, it’s all about males declaring their presence and re-establishing and defending territories. They’re also advertising their presence to females and the purity or complexity of a song, depending on the species, will also alert females to what kind of partner and father they might make.
Next is the search for a site. Perhaps male wrens work the hardest in this respect. They construct several nests before taking potential partners around these show-homes. The female makes the final choice but sometimes a male wren will be such a great nest-maker that they attract multiple females to their nests! Different birds look for different locations – blue and great tits, starlings and house sparrows look for holes, blackbirds and robins hunt for easy-to-access but hidden sites whereas goldfinches and long-tailed tits search for spots concealed in thick hedges, shrubs and other vegetation. You can make or buy different nest boxes that suit the needs of different species.
If you’ve got a garden and you have space, why not put up a nest box? Place it high enough to be out of the reach of cats and somewhere sheltered from the prevailing wind or direct sun. House sparrows nest colonially so a large box with separate openings and compartments is perfect for them. If you’ve got thick vegetation, why not hide an open-fronted box in it for robins or blackbirds? If you’re popping up a box on a house, shed or garage wall, do you want one with smaller holes for blue tits or do you want to give starling numbers a boost and use one with a slightly bigger hole? We’ve got information on our website to help you make one www.worcswildlifetrust.co.uk/actions/how-build-bird-box or you could buy one.
In order to lay eggs and raise a family, birds need to feed up to come into tip-top condition – it takes a lot of energy (and calcium resources) for a female bird to lay eggs. A blue tit in my friend’s nest box a few years ago laid an astonishing 14 eggs – the parents need an awful lot of energy to feed these hungry little ones. Continuing to feed the birds through spring can really help – high-fat foods like suet balls, sunflower seeds and peanuts are great (but ensure that nuts are not available whole as they can be a choking risk to baby birds). Hopefully, your garden and local greenspace will provide abundant natural food too – young blue tits need 100 caterpillars every single day! Adult birds will happily replenish their needs at your feeders but they’re savvy enough to find natural food to feed to the youngsters.
Back to Valentine’s Day. If, like our feathered friends, your partner makes your heart sing, why not rent a nest box on one of our nature reserves for them? This thoughtful present will help to keep our woodlands alive with birdsong. We supplement natural nesting opportunities for birds on our nature reserves with nest boxes to add even more choice. For just £20 for the year, you’ll get an update of which birds choose to use your box and may even get the chance to visit the box itself. Just visit our website for more information