17 



Wrens and chickadees: box should be 12 x 5 x 4 inches, 

 size of the hole ij inches, placed 6 to 25 feet from the ground. 



Flickers: box should be 15 x 10 x 8 inches, hole 3 to 3^ 

 inches, placed 6 to 25 feet from the ground. 



Screech owl: box should be 15 x 12 x 12 inches, hole 3 to 

 3§ inches, placed 15 feet from the ground. 



Martin house colony, hole 2 inches, place pole 16 to 20 

 feet high in open fields where the martins can see the house. 



The cover should be detachable so that the box can 

 be easily cleaned and the box should be inspected each 

 year for gypsy moth or other insects' eggs. 



A sloping top with an overhang is a protection to the 

 young birds from both sun and rain. 



The inside depth of 6 to 8 inches from the hole to 

 the bottom of the box keeps the cat from pulling the 

 young birds out of the nest. 



Squirrels may be kept out of the boxes by putting 

 a piece of zinc around the hole so that they cannot 

 enlarge it by gnawing. 



The box should be ventilated. This can be done by 

 having near the overhanging cover two holes on each 

 side, which may be closed up by ordinary corks in the 

 early part of the season, and when hot weather has 

 established itself, the corks may be removed. 



When painted, be sure that the paint is dry and hard. 

 It is better to put the boxes up and let them weather 

 early in the winter, that their newness may be gone 

 before the birds arrive. 



So much for the box itself. Where shall we put it? 

 The entrance hole should face the south or west to 

 protect it from the prevailing storms of this vicinity. 

 Better than trees are posts 8 feet high, on the top of 

 which the box may be placed. For example, if every 

 third post of boundary fences were left 8 feet high and 

 a box fastened to the top, many birds would use the 

 boxes. The pole method, moreover, saves the ravages 



