3i8 Birds of Buzzard's Roost 



birds and tree swallows to nest in these boxes. This is only 

 one of the numerous instances that teach one that his own 

 experience alone is never an infallible guide. Those who are 

 much troubled by the sparrow may find the swinging boxes 

 worth trying. 



Little reliance can be placed on boxes without a perch, 

 for a sparrow is likely to get into any hole that any other 

 bird of its size can enter. Mrs. Mary R. Stanley suggests the 

 use of martin boxes without a perch and with the entrance 

 underneath. I have had no experience with such houses. 



Every small nesting-box should be provided with a cover 

 or door, by which it can be opened and the contents removed. 

 This is always practicable, except perhaps with large martin 

 boxes, which should have entrance holes large enought so 

 that the rooms can be cleaned out through them. A box 

 which can be opened provides a way to get rid of the sparrows. 

 Their eggs can be removed every week until they tire of 

 laying and leave the locality, or their nests can be destroyed 

 with little trouble. There need be no sentiment about des- 

 troying these unfortunate little pests. Squirrels and mice 

 often occupy these boxes, and their nests must be removed 

 unless we prefer them to the birds. All the boxes mentioned 

 above provide for this, except the shingle and bark boxes, 

 which, however, can easily be made to open. The box shown 

 in the cut above is the most convenient of all, where English 

 sparrows are plenty. The door extends half way down the 

 front and is attached to a narrow cover which overlaps a part 

 of the top of the box. This arrangement needs no locking 

 so long as it is not meddled with by children, and can be 

 taken out in an instant without disturbing the nest, leaving 

 an opening large enough to put in the hand and remove the 

 contents of the box at once. 



For those who wish to study the habits of such birds as 

 can be induced to nest in boxes, the observation box shown in 

 the cut is very nearly perfect. More than thirty years ago 

 I made the first one for the purpose of studying the domestic 

 economy of a pair of bluebirds. It is a simple affair with one 

 side rabbeted for a pane of glass, and a door which shuts over 

 the glass. The door is kept closed most of the time until the 



