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March 31, 2005  Boxing Days Some people can spot opportunity in any situation; I find duck box components in scraps of tossed plywood and see potential nest box spots in broken off stubs of trees. And so it was that my latest duck box got hung. During my most recent house-sit, as I walked down along the creek, I was pleasantly surprised to see an old Lodgepole pine snapped off at about the 20 foot level. The standing stub faced the creek with no obstructions in front of it, a necessary component if it is to be used by the type of ducks most likely to be interested in such a box. This tall stump virtually cried out to be the site of a duck box. I recently made a duck box but after looking it over I wasn’t pleased with its stubby size. Often, available lengths of wood dictate the size of a box, and though this box would be kept for future use, I thought the ideal location called for an ideal box. My wandering eyes fell upon a demonstration duck box I use in bird box displays. It was tall and regal, made from real spruce boards and even featured a removable, elevated floor I call the Sadowsky Couch, in honour of Joe Sadowsky, the bird box man of BC. One of his boxes at Green Lake used a shallow wooden tray on skids, which sat inside the duck box. The idea is that the nest, which consists of shavings put in by the duck box builder and the female duck’s down, never sits on the floor of the box - a great feature should there be a mini-flood. Clean out also becomes easy because all one needs do is slide out the little wooden tray and toss out the old material. So it was decided, the nest demonstration duck box would be installed on the pine stub. I carried the duck box down to creek level the day I brought it over to the house-sit location and let it sit overnight. In order to remind myself that the box still needed the all-important shavings inside, I left the access side flap open. The day of the hanging I enlisted the help of a friend to hold the ladder steady while I did the high level engineering. The trunk of the tree was still very sound and large enough that the ladder leaned against it gave a secure feeling. I climbed to the top and my assistant handed me the box. Then the fun began. When I hang boxes I try not to use spikes to affix the box to the tree opting instead for thick wire. This way, should the tree later fall, a chain saw operator wouldn’t get a nasty surprise as he cut through a hidden spike. I easily looped the upper wire of the box around the jagged top of the stump to hold the box in place but it wobbled at the slightest touch. To secure it tightly I left two screws on either side of the bottom of the box projecting where I hoped to affix a second, tightly wrapped wire. This proved difficult. Had I used eye-screws it would have been a simple matter to thread each end of the wire and cinch it down. But I had used straight drywall screws and as a result I spent a great deal of time trying to wind a thick wire onto a small screw shaft only to have it lift off as I tried attaching the free end to the other screw. The situation was further complicated by the tree being so big in circumference that I was forced to work with one hand where working with two would have been a great assistance. After a lot of cursing and spider-like gyrations the box was finally hung. I hadn’t seen a single duck on the creek in the first few days of the house-sit but undeterred I set up my vintage lawn chair on a the lawn overlooking the creek and spent time watching for any developments. Nothing happened the first day but at dawn the next day I saw the glinting of white feathers on the creek far below. I ran for the binoculars and was pleased to see a male Common Goldeneye floating on the creek just down from the box. This bird spent all day on the creek in the vicinity of the box and was still there as the light faded to night. I speculated that this male would wait for the next female of his species to come flying up or down the creek and flag her down to show her his find. A female Goldeneye without a proper nesting cavity won’t allow mating so finding a duck box was critical. The next day, even before the sun came up, I peered down at the creek. To my surprise there were now two Goldeneyes, a male and female. Had the male gone out in the night and brought back a female? Did she just happen along? I couldn’t be sure but there she sat. Things got rather disappointing after that. Both Goldeneyes disappeared later that day and never returned. Again I spent the next few days speculating and watching. Did she already have a suitable box or natural cavity elsewhere and the male followed her to that one? Was it too early in the season for cavity nesting ducks to be really interested in nest boxes? Was this perhaps an immature female with no interest in nesting this year? There were many possibilities but the only thing I never doubted in all my ruminations was that this box was somehow deficient. How could any duck resist this perfect location and had she taken the time to look in the box itself, resist the Sadowsky Couch? The house-sit ended without further cavity-nesting duck action but I am confident that soon the right tenant will happen along. To keep from obsessing about this eventuality I have other bird box plans. A bluebird box was given to me last week and I said I would see that it got put up somewhere, though at the time I had no idea where that would be. While still at the house-sit I hiked across in a field where I saw this year’s first Mountain Bluebirds and decided then and there to erect the box on a fence nearby. These are the boxing days of the year, and I plan to celebrate as much as I can. To e-mail Tom CLICK HERE To look at previous column CLICK HERE |
