After boring the entrance hole, split the log and 
gouge out a pocket in each piece big enough for 
a nest 
Working with such a pattern and gauge, a box 
standardized to the normal size of your feathered 
neighbors can be made 
The completed box, resembling a natural wood¬ 
pecker’s nest hole. Fasten the halves together 
and nail to a tree 
Some birds, such as chickadees and 
titmice, either take possession of 
natural cavities or the deserted nest 
holes of other birds, or make nest ex¬ 
cavations for themselves in very soft, 
dead wood. Still others, such as the 
crested flycatcher, tree swallow, blue¬ 
bird, house wren, nuthatch, sparrow 
hawk and screech owl, always seek a 
ready-made nest cavity. 
Nearly any of these may be at¬ 
tracted to an artificial nesting cavity 
.resembling a natural woodpecker nest 
hole. Such a nesting box is made by 
cutting a section of tree trunk of 
proper diameter and length to provide 
for the expected tenant, boring an 
entrance hole a little more than half 
way through near one end, splitting 
the stick in half at right angles to the 
entrance, and excavating in either 
half a pocket, shaped like the transverse half of a woodpecker 
nest hole. The form of this excavation, and gauge and pattern 
for marking and measuring it are shown in the illustration. The 
halves are nailed to¬ 
gether and the box is 
fastened up in a tree. 
Baron von Berlepsch, 
experimenting with 
methods for attracting 
birds on bis German 
estate, developed ma¬ 
chinery for manufac¬ 
turing similar boxes, 
drilling the excavation 
from the top without 
splitting the log. He 
found these boxes very 
successful, a n d the 
property where they 
were placed was much 
freer from insect pests 
than adjoining estates. 
Bluebirds and house 
wrens are not at all 
fussy as to the archi¬ 
tecture of their homes. Plain wood 
boxes six inches square and ten inches 
deep will do very well for them. A 
round entrance hole should be cut 
near the top, and it is well to have a 
little perch for the birds to alight on 
when about to enter. There should 
also be a sloping roof to shed rain. 
One spring a pair of bluebirds 
came about the place that the writer 
had just occupied. Their actions 
plainly indicated that they were seek¬ 
ing a home and desired to be neigh¬ 
bors. A rough box was hurriedly 
prepared and nailed up on the barn. 
Within fifteen minutes the bluebirds 
were carrying in tbeir furniture—con¬ 
sisting of dried grass and straws. 
Later in the season the insects that 
they brought home to the hungry 
young family were evidence of the 
value of bluebirds as neighbors. 
I louse wrens will occupy these plain boxes (in fact, a pair took 
possession of the bluebird box a year or two later), and they 
are not even averse to 
establishing a house¬ 
hold in an old tomato 
can nailed up on post 
or tree. Their pleasing 
and persistent melody 
and the activity they 
display in reducing the 
ranks of the insect 
hordes constitute a 
high rate of rental and 
make the birds desir¬ 
able tenants and neigh¬ 
bors. 
Providing artificial 
food for wild birds is 
done in a number of 
ways, and the menu 
offered may have con¬ 
siderable variety. Win¬ 
ter is the season when 
the birds’ natural food 
A bird bath in the yard is an endless source of amusement. It 
can be made cheaply and, with a little care, become a decora¬ 
tive feature of the garden 
Another type of nesting cavity is thatched with 
bark and protected with twigs that prevent 
heavy winds from blowing away the nest 
In a formal garden a more decorative bird house 
can be built of branches and shingled over 
against storms 
372 
