Galvan

ized

sheet m

etal

18"

5” for 4” p

ost

6” for 5” p

ost

7.25” for 6” p

ost

rivet

Pre

dato

r Gu

ards

A p

red

ator g

uard

will h

elp

to im

pro

ve th

e ch

ance

of a su

ccessfu

l hatch

by p

reve

ntin

g e

gg

-eatin

g

raccoo

ns fro

m e

nte

ring

you

r ne

st bo

x.All b

oxe

s

sho

uld

inclu

de

Pre

da

tor G

ua

rds!

GA

LVA

NIZ

ED

SH

EE

T M

ET

AL C

ON

ET

his is th

e mo

st effective pred

ator d

eterrent. C

ut a 3

6" d

iameter circle o

f

sheet m

etal. Cu

t an ap

pro

priately-sized

ho

le in th

e mid

dle to

accom

od

ate

po

le size. Rem

ove an

8"slice fro

m th

e circle, join

the ed

ges to fo

rm th

e con

e,

and

rivet togeth

er.

ST

EE

L SH

EE

T S

AN

DW

ICH

36

”x 49

”she

et o

f 28

-gau

ge

stee

l

•F

old

the sh

eet in h

alf alon

g the 4

9" len

gth, creatin

g a fron

t and

a back

,

each 2

4" w

ide

•A

lon

g on

e 36

" side, m

ake a 1" fo

ld tow

ards th

e insid

e centre

•D

rill two

ho

les, 34

" apart (see d

iagram)

•P

lace you

r guard

so it su

rrou

nd

s the p

ole o

r tree trun

k. Slip

the u

nfo

lded

side u

nd

er the 1

" fold

.Usin

g vice-grips, b

end

the co

rners in

to lo

ck these

pieces an

d p

revent th

e guard

from

op

enin

g.

•P

ole m

ou

nt: b

olt th

e guard

into

place ab

ou

t 2" b

elow th

e nest b

ox.

•T

ree mo

un

t: nail th

e guard

in p

lace—if th

e tree is alive, check th

e guard

often to en

sure tree grow

th h

asn’t p

opp

ed th

e guard

off.

PLA

ST

IC P

IPE

GU

AR

DM

etal or p

lastic pip

e (stove p

ipe, sew

er pip

e) drilled

at the to

p an

d b

otto

m

and

bo

lted to

the tree o

r po

le makes an

effective pred

ator gu

ard. T

o p

revent

small ro

den

ts from

crawlin

g thro

ugh

, place a cru

mp

led p

iece of ch

icken w

ire

betw

een th

e po

le and

the gu

ard.

TH

IS IN

FO

RM

AT

ION

HA

S B

EE

N C

OM

PIL

ED

FR

OM

TH

E N

ES

T B

OX

GU

IDE

FO

R W

AT

ER

FO

WL

BY

DU

CK

S U

NL

IMIT

ED

AN

D T

HE

CA

NA

DIA

N W

ILD

LIF

E S

ER

VIC

E, E

NV

IRO

NM

EN

T C

AN

AD

A; A

ND

A

CO

NS

ER

VA

TO

R A

RT

ICL

E B

Y M

EA

RL

RO

ON

EY

(VO

L.1

9,N

O.3

).

GA

LVA

NIZ

ED

SHE

ET

ME

TA

LC

ON

E

STE

EL SH

EE

TSA

ND

WIC

H

PLA

STIC

PIP

EG

UA

RD

CED

AR

IS IDEA

LC

edar lu

mb

er is recom

men

ded

becau

se it

is natu

rally resistant to

weath

er and

insects. Y

ou

can also

use o

ther lu

mb

er

such

as pin

e or p

lywo

od

. Boxes m

ade o

f

plastic o

r metal are n

ot p

referred. A

void

treated lu

mb

er. Th

e box p

ictured

uses1

0.5

8 lin

ear feet of 1

” x 10

” (3/4

”

thick b

y 9 1

/4” w

ide) lu

mb

er that is

rou

gh o

n o

ne sid

e (for th

e insid

e of th

e

box).

FINISH

ING

TOU

CH

ESD

uck

s Un

limited

do

es no

t recom

men

d

app

lying a fin

ish to

cedar b

oxes. A fin

ish

migh

t help

to exten

d th

e life of a p

ly-

wo

od

box.

If you

decid

e to ap

ply a fin

ish to

you

r

nest b

ox, use a n

on

toxic wo

od

preserver

or a ligh

t shad

e of an

earth-to

ne p

aint.

Th

e du

cks w

ill find

you

r box b

y seeing

the co

ntrast in

colo

r caused

by th

e entry

ho

le. Do

no

t app

ly finish

insid

e the b

ox.

Cavity n

esting d

uck

s do n

ot carry nestin

g

materials. It’s im

portan

t to help

them

out

by p

lacing fo

ur to

six inch

es of w

oo

d

shavin

gs in th

e bo

ttom

of th

e

box.Y

ou

can fin

d w

oo

d

shavin

gs at you

r local

pet o

r farm su

pp

ly

store. Do not use

sawdust.It can

suffo

cate

du

cklings an

d

ho

lds m

oistu

re.

Every year in

the

fall, after the

nestin

g season

has co

mp

leted,

or in

the w

inter, clean

ou

t old

nestin

g

material fro

m th

e box an

d rep

lace it with

a fresh layer o

f wo

od

shavin

gs. This

annual cleaning needs to be a part ofyour long-term

maintenance com

-m

itment once you place your nest

box. Avo

id th

e urge to

loo

k into

the b

ox

du

ring sp

ring an

d su

mm

er.

Bu

ild a D

uck

Ne

st Bo

xW

oo

d d

ucks, b

uffle

he

ads, b

arrow

’s go

lde

ne

yes, co

mm

on

go

lde

ne

yes, h

oo

de

d m

erg

anse

rs and

com

mo

n

me

rgan

sers are

all cavity ne

sting

du

cks. The

y bu

ild n

ests in

aban

do

ne

d w

oo

dp

ecke

r ho

les o

r natu

ral tree

cavities cau

sed

by

dise

ase, fire o

r ligh

tnin

g. Th

ese

du

cks will also

use

a con

structe

d

ne

sting

bo

x. He

re are

plan

s for a n

est b

ox th

at you

can b

uild

,

install an

d m

aintain

. The

de

sign

, wh

ich is u

sed

by th

e

Du

cks Un

limite

d G

ree

nw

ing

pro

gram

, may e

ven

attract oth

er

cavity ne

sting

bird

s such

as kestre

ls, tree

swallo

ws, g

reat cre

sted

flycatche

rs or scre

ech

ow

ls.

GR

EA

T L

AK

ES

/A

TL

AN

TIC

RE

GIO

NA

L O

FF

ICE

|1

22

0 E

ISE

NH

OW

ER

PL

AC

E

AN

N A

RB

OR

, MI 4

81

08

|T

. 73

4.6

23

.20

00

|F

. 73

4.6

23

.20

35

|W

WW

.DU

CK

S.O

RG

Co

nstru

cting

and

placin

g a n

est

bo

x is a fun

pro

ject that b

ring

s

years of en

joym

ent. A

bo

ve: this

po

le-mo

un

ted n

est bo

x features a

con

ical metal p

redato

r gu

ard.

Belo

w: w

oo

d d

uck d

rake.

NE

ST

BO

X M

AIN

TE

NA

NC

E: A

LON

G-T

ER

M C

OM

MIT

ME

NT

On

ce a cavity nestin

g bird

starts usin

g you

r box, yo

u’ll likely see

man

y bro

od

s raised o

ver the years.N

esting sites fo

r these b

irds are

limited

in n

um

ber.W

hen

they fin

d a go

od

nestin

g site, there is a

very goo

d ch

ance th

ey’ll return

in fo

llowin

g years. Wh

en yo

u p

ut

up

a nest b

ox you

are com

mittin

g you

rself to m

aintain

ing th

at box.

Fall an

d w

inter are th

e best tim

es to rem

ove o

ld n

esting m

aterial,

tighten

any lo

ose screw

s and

mo

un

ts, and

add

new

wo

od

shavin

gs.

If you

do

n’t h

ave any d

uck

s usin

g you

r box o

ver the su

mm

er, do

n’t

worry. W

aterfowl b

iolo

gists have seen

waterfow

l migratin

g in th

e

fall scop

e ou

t po

tential n

esting sites fo

r next sp

ring. T

his to

o is a

goo

d reaso

n to

keep yo

ur b

oxes in to

p co

nd

ition

. Yo

u n

ever know

wh

en so

meb

od

y migh

t be p

opp

ing in

!

gnid

niF

erud

ecor

Pthe Right Place

Too

ls and

Materials N

eeded

handsaw or table saw

drill and 1/2”bitjigsawscrew

driversandpaperpencilm

easuring tapestraight-edgew

ood screws

wood 1 each 1 x 10 x 12’

1.M

easure an

d cu

t you

r wo

od

to p

rod

uce th

e

six pieces.N

um

ber th

e pieces as sh

own

.See

material m

easurem

ents.

2.A

ttach th

e back (1

) to th

e side (2

) usin

g fou

r

screws fasten

ed fro

m th

e back o

f the b

ox. See

explo

ded

view.

3.D

rill five 1

/2" d

rainage h

oles in

to th

e flo

or

(3). A

ttach th

e flo

or b

y fastenin

g two

screws

thro

ugh

the b

ack and

two

thro

ugh

the sid

e.

4.D

raw th

e entry h

ole o

n th

e fron

t (4) u

sing a

pen

cil (4 1

/2" x 3

1/2

" oval). D

rill a pilo

t ho

le

and

cut o

ut th

e entry h

ole u

sing a jig saw

. See

detailed

view. P

rop

er entry h

ole d

imen

sion

s

are critical.

5.S

core th

e insid

e face of th

e fron

t (4) w

ith a

saw. Th

e ho

rizon

tal slots w

ill pro

vide to

e-

ho

lds w

hen

the d

ucklin

gs climb

ou

t. Yo

u can

also u

se hard

ware clo

th.

6.A

ttach th

e fron

t (4) u

sing six screw

s.

7.R

ou

nd

the to

p o

utsid

e edge o

f the d

oo

r with

sand

pap

er (5). S

ee explo

ded

view. F

asten th

e

do

or at th

e top

with

on

e screw fro

m th

e fron

t

and

on

e from

the b

ack.Th

e two

screws fo

rm

the h

inge an

d allow

the d

oo

r to o

pen

. Pin

the

do

or sh

ut w

ith a n

ail from

the fro

nt o

r add

a

latch.

8.A

ttach th

e roo

f (6) u

sing fo

ur screw

s from

the to

p an

d th

ree screws fro

m th

e back (b

e

careful n

ot to

screw in

to th

e do

or). Th

e box

is now

ready to

install. D

on’t fo

rget to p

ut a

4–

6 in

ch layer o

f wo

od

shavin

gs into

the b

ox

for n

esting m

aterial.

No

w th

at yo

u’ve

com

ple

ted

con

structio

n o

f you

r

ne

st bo

x, you

ne

ed

to co

nsid

er w

he

re to

insta

ll it.

Be

sure

to p

lace th

e b

ox in

a lo

catio

n th

at w

ill be

con

ven

ien

t for m

on

itorin

g a

nd

an

nu

al m

ain

te-

na

nce

.

WH

ERE TO

FIND

TENA

NTS

To

increase th

e chan

ces of yo

ur n

est box b

eing u

sed b

y waterfow

l, it sho

uld

be lo

cated in

an area attractive to

cavity nestin

g du

cks. Y

ou’ll see th

ese bird

s

usin

g wo

od

ed w

etland

s that co

ntain

water year ro

un

d o

r, at least, thro

ugh

ou

t

the su

mm

er. Yo

u’ll also see th

em u

sing trees alo

ng riverb

ank

s and

lake sho

re-

lines.

PO

SITION

ING

YO

UR

NEST B

OX

Nest b

oxes can b

e mo

un

ted o

n tree tru

nk

s or o

n steel p

oles b

eside th

e water

or ab

ove th

e water.

GO

OD

PLA

CEM

ENT:a d

ead tree at th

e water’s ed

ge

BETTER

PLA

CEM

ENT:a so

lid d

ead tree in

the w

ater

BEST P

LAC

EMEN

T:boxes o

n p

oles n

ear stand

ing, fl

oo

ded

, dead

trees

Live trees can

be u

sed fo

r mo

un

ting b

oxes, bu

t keep a clo

se eye on

you

r box.

Gro

win

g trees may lo

osen

mo

un

ts and

make b

oxes less attractive to th

e bird

s.

TREE TR

UN

KS

Live an

d d

ead trees are su

itable. If b

eavers are arou

nd

, do

n’t p

lace nest b

oxes

on

pop

lar or w

hite b

irch trees. B

eavers eat these trees. A

lso, avo

id p

lacing th

e

box w

here stiff

bran

ches are clo

se to th

e box. R

accoo

ns can

climb

these

bran

ches an

d gain

access to th

e box.

STEEL PO

LESM

ake sure th

e po

les are fixed

solid

ly in th

e soil o

r marsh

bo

ttom

, to en

sure

that th

e nest b

oxes are stable. D

rill two

ho

les in th

is po

le to acco

mm

od

ate a

pred

ator gu

ard (see last p

age).

Boxes sh

ou

ld b

e placed

abo

ve typical h

igh w

ater levels and

at a heigh

t that

will allow

you

to access th

e box fo

r mo

nito

ring an

d m

ainten

ance (ab

ou

t 4

to 6

feet abo

ve land

or w

ater). In term

s of d

istance in

land

, try to keep

you

r

box clo

se to th

e water.

Clear an

un

ob

structed

fligh

t path

to yo

ur n

est box b

y remo

ving b

ranch

es

that m

ight b

e in th

e way.

The en

trance h

ole to

the b

ox sho

uld

face the w

ater.

Yo

u can

tip th

e box fo

rward

a little bit to

help

the d

ucklin

gs reach th

e

entran

ce.

Du

cklings p

refer privacy. D

on’t m

ou

nt b

oxes close to

hu

man

distu

rban

ce

or clo

se to o

ther n

est boxes.

MA

TERIA

L MEA

SUR

EMEN

TS—not to scale!

BA

CK

FRO

NT

31”23.5”

9.25"

9.25"9.25"

DO

OR

9.25"

RO

OF

9.25"

FLOO

R7.75”

9.25"

SIDE

23.5”

14”23.5”

DETA

ILED FR

ON

T VIEW

—not to scale!

Entry H

ole

3.5"

4.5"3.25"

Kerf C

uts

(Insid

e face)

or H

ardw

are C

loth

EXP

LOD

ED V

IEW—

not to scale!

BA

CK

SIDE

FRO

NT

FLOO

R

DO

OR

CLEA

NO

UT

RO

OF

Hin

ge fo

r Clean

ou

t Do

or