NESTING-BOXES 229 



Imitation on outside only. In this type the houses 

 are made of sections of small trees or of pieces of wood 

 with the bark on, but there is no attempt to make the 

 inside conform to the shape of a woodpecker's nest. 

 It may be cylindrical, cubical, or of irregular shape. 

 This type includes the following kinds of houses; 

 bark houses, boxes made of slabs with the bark on, 

 hollow limbs and sections of limbs, or small trees 

 with a hole excavated by boring lengthwise with 

 a large auger. 



Bark houses. Very attractive houses can be made 

 entirely of bark. Limbs of trees, or small trees of the 

 desired size, should be cut into sections of ten or 

 twelve inches in length, about the latter part of 

 June. The bark can be easily removed and with the 

 addition of a roof and floor may easily be made into 

 a nesting-box. Very good imitations of tree-trunks 

 may be secured by constructing boxes out of slabs 

 with the bark on. 



Sections of hollow trees or limbs make some of 

 the very best bird-houses. Sometimes pieces may 

 be found with the center already decayed, in which 

 case it is only necessary to saw off a section of the 

 desired length, fasten on a floor and a roof, and 

 make the entrance hole. It is desirable that the roof 

 be put on in such a way as to be readily removed. 

 To hollow out a solid limb, saw it in halves from 

 one end to about three inches from the other, where 

 a cross-cut is made at right angles. The two pieces 



