Bird Lovers as Landlords 209 



fastened to special posts and placed around 

 open fields. 



Purple martins seem to prefer to nest in many- 

 roomed houses rather than in nest boxes which 

 accommodate only one family. Such houses 

 should be erected either on special poles, on 

 telegraph or telephone poles, the trunks of trees, 

 or on the tops of buildings. Martins like plenty 

 of open space on at least one side, and they are 

 especially fond of the banks of rivers whence they 

 can swing out over the water. From fifteen to 

 twenty-five feet is plenty high enough for martin 

 houses, though they are often placed much 

 higher. 



Great-crested flycatchers usually seek their 

 nesting sites in open woods or orchards. 

 Anywhere from six to fifteen feet will be found 

 a good height for the nest boxes. 



Flickers are fond of nesting in old orchards 

 where some of the trees are dead or dying, but 

 they often nest in trees standing in the open, or 

 in posts or even buildings at some distance from 

 human habitation. As I have said, good heights 

 for their nesting boxes may be found anywhere 

 from eight to twenty-five feet above the ground. 



Red-headed woodpeckers like open woods but 

 seem to be quite willing to accept hospitality 

 offered them in quiet gardens and orchards. 

 14 



