Forums36
Topics41,013
Posts558,518
Members18,530
|
Most Online3,612 Jan 10th, 2023
|
|
9 members (wps456, jludwig, ewest, catscratch, RAH, LANGSTER, Jason D, Don Kennedy, FishinRod),
1,166
guests, and
294
robots. |
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
OP
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2 |
I never got a chance to clean out the WD boxes this past winter. I would like to do it in the next couple of weekends. Is it too late? Do I risk disturbing potential and/or existing tenants? For the record, in the 1.5 years that they have been there, I cannot say that I have actually seen and WD activity in the boxes...but...we are absentee and cannot say for sure that there was no interest last year.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 8,800 Likes: 69
Chairman, Pond Boss Legacy award; Moderator; field correspondent Lunker
|
Chairman, Pond Boss Legacy award; Moderator; field correspondent Lunker
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 8,800 Likes: 69 |
Bski
I will follow this thread with interest...I'm planning on having a few WD boxes myself and can use this information. Could you get in a ladder and just peak in before making a decision to infiltrate the nest?
Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~ Henry David Thoreau
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 37
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 37 |
Hey Brettski,
In Louisiana WDs are already setting. I have about 18 boxes and would be surprised if they werent practically all full of eggs. If you miss a year of cleaning dont worry they seem to do some housekeeping themselves. Even if you scare them off the nest they will return. So either you will find a nest of eggs or an empty box that you can clean. Either way noting is lost by checking. If you have seen WDs anywhere in your area and have a box out chances are they will find and use it. Make sure you have a preditor guard though or your efforts are lost. It is likely that your birds do start nesting later so you may catch them before they lay. You are a good man providing habitat for those amazing creatures.
Dr Bob Guillory
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
|
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2 |
They are not nesting here in VA yet, I think you are safe in IL... But like Bob said, it cannot hurt to check. When you clean the box out, make sure you leave wood shavings or at least some saw dust on the bottom of the box. It really makes a difference as to whether the birds will use it.
Wood ducks are pretty picky in my experience. But if they like your location and box, they will use it for years.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 388
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 388 |
Good information. I have two boxes and haven't got a WD yet but am still hopefull -- they will come.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
OP
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2 |
Thanks for the quick reply, Bob. I imagine you might have seen an older thread that I started about developing critter sanctuary . I wonder what your thoughts are regarding having 4 nesting boxes within this one zone, and the fact that they are surrounded by water. - CJB adds... When you clean the box out, make sure you leave wood shavings or at least some saw dust on the bottom of the box. After installing the boxes, I went to PetsMart and bought a big ol' bag of cedar shavings for about $9. I still have plenty.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 941
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 941 |
You are real close to being to late, you need to do it this week at the latest. When inspecting the box be very careful and leave the opening clear just encase a hen woodie comes flying out. If you see any complete eggs in the box close it up and leave it alone. If there isn't any eggs present you could clean it out and it may be used yet this year.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 265
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 265 |
They are not nesting here in VA yet, I think you are safe in IL... But like Bob said, it cannot hurt to check. When you clean the box out, make sure you leave wood shavings or at least some saw dust on the bottom of the box. It really makes a difference as to whether the birds will use it.
Wood ducks are pretty picky in my experience. But if they like your location and box, they will use it for years. It is my understanding that Woodducks do not build a nest, so if you clean last years nest out, you have to fill the box back up with nesting material...at least thats what I do. good article http://www.ducks.org/Conservation/WaterfowlBiology/2716/WoodDuckBoxes.html
Last edited by Sgt911; 03/25/09 08:34 AM.
"Is the Poop-Deck really what I think it is?" - Homer Simpson
"A man can't just sit around" - Larry Walters, 1982
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 28,606 Likes: 861
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 28,606 Likes: 861 |
Brettski:
Have the mallards nested in the condo? Last year both the goose and a pair of mallards nested on the island. Something got into the goose nest and she took over the mallard nest, but she abandonded it when we started the pond renovation. Both of them are back this year tho!
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
OP
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2 |
I haven't seen any evidence, but last year was the first full year when it might have occurred. Being absentee + having all the duck nesting structures in a humanly inaccessible part of the pond + being busier than all get-out on all the other projects we were working on = unable to actually check or know what might have happened.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 325
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 325 |
Question on the mallards.. I had 2 mallards show up end of December, and about 3 weeks ago found them nesting on the ground under some bushes with about 14 eggs. Last week we noticed broken egg shells, and check and all the eggs were gone. Heron? Grackels? Raccoon? Not sure what. So I wanted to see if I could build them a nest structure. I found some people online saying they would re-nest. Found this: http://www.deltawaterfowl.org/ddp/henhouses/build.phpBuilt one quickly. Liner pond so I couldn't put it on their mount, so I put it on 2 saw horses I had in the water to avoid predators. Here's a pic of them and the fish feeding next to it. Odds they'll use it??
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
OP
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2 |
odds: absurdly excellent nice job. You used the same directions that I did, 'cept I put mine on poles.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 325
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 325 |
absurdly excellent eh? I was thinking absurdly poor.. you're giving me hope! how much 'stuff' did you put inside? I'm not sure if I have too much...
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
OP
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2 |
remember; this comes from a guy that can't document any success with his own Mallard factories. - When I saw the movie you linked with a door mat rolled up and a hen sitting inside, that's when the phrase "absurdly excellent" hit me.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
|
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2 |
Mallards are a much better bet to get to nest than are woodies... In me experience woodies are fairly picky. Wood ducks tend to nest in the general same area where they were hatched. So if your pond is nowhere near another wetland or body of water, it may be hard to coax a new pair to venture into a new region.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 285
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 285 |
I put a WD box out last year on a pole mounted approx 6 feet out in the water. Haven't seen anything in it yet but I will check it this weekend to make sure no wasp moved in. Had teo Canadian Geese using my floating deck in the middle of the pond as a sleeping roost at night for about 2 weeks but I havent seen them in over a week. I really enjoyed watching them come cruising in at sundown from wherever they spent their day. The pan of scratch feed I put on the deck probably didn't hurt. We all like a midnight snack don't we?
Last edited by Jeff Walker; 03/25/09 03:46 PM. Reason: I'm a spelling fool
Do not tell fish stories where the people know you; but particularly, don't tell them where they know the fish. Mark Twain
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 167
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 167 |
Usually if we have a hen nesting the male will not be too far away. If you show up at your pond and see a single male (or two or more males if more than one of your boxes are being used) their is a good chance of a hen being in one of your houses. We have 4 boxes spread over 3 ponds and most years one of them will be used as a "dump nest." As a naturalist explained to us, a dump nest is a nest that multiple hens will use to lay eggs that they dont ever plan on incubating for one reason or another. We have found as many as 30 eggs in a dump nest after the breeding season is over. Pulling 30 rotten duck eggs out of a box at the end of August isn't pleasant, especially if you break one . Hopefully none of your nests was used as a dump nest last season and is now sitting full of "ripe" eggs.
Every person should have an interest in life - I think I'll go fishing. ~ Thoreau
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 37
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 37 |
Brettski,
I reread your critter sanctuary thread and I owe you an apology. You really are a perfectionist. I didnt realize who I was talking to. Love the hinged poles for maintainence. I mount 2 woodduck boxes back to back on 2.5 inch drill casing with a preditor guard. I dont place the duplex in site of another duplex. I use rough cyperss as it ages it looks so natural. I groove the letters L S U below the opening on the inside for the ducks to have a ladder to get out HA! I have noted that both sides of the duplex are consistantly utilized.
Bob Guillory
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
|
OP
Ambassador Field Correspondent Lunker
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 6,934 Likes: 2 |
(we never did anything to disturb and/or clean out the nesting boxes) - ...a month later We're sitting at the picnic table at the end of another work day, trying to take Eric's advice to force time to "take it in". We watched the tree swallows that comandeered the bluebird house as they prepared their nest. The Kingbirds are already tending to 2 nests of broods; one under the dock roof and one under the actual pier. There's some kinda different wren working one of the woodland Chickadee houses. An eagle just flew over (that's a first). Then I see a duck flapping his little wings a mile-a-minute as he crosses the pond in the distance. About 10 feet short of the WD box, he back-peddles just slightly to slow down just enought to shoot right into the hole of the box like a laser guided rocket. Gone. I watched for about 20 more minutes. Nothing more. I cannot say that I have any idea what kinda duck went in there....only the assumption...?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 8,800 Likes: 69
Chairman, Pond Boss Legacy award; Moderator; field correspondent Lunker
|
Chairman, Pond Boss Legacy award; Moderator; field correspondent Lunker
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 8,800 Likes: 69 |
(we never did anything to disturb and/or clean out the nesting boxes) - ...a month later We're sitting at the picnic table at the end of another work day, trying to take Eric's advice to force time to "take it in". We watched the tree swallows that comandeered the bluebird house as they prepared their nest. The Kingbirds are already tending to 2 nests of broods; one under the dock roof and one under the actual pier. There's some kinda different wren working one of the woodland Chickadee houses. An eagle just flew over (that's a first). Then I see a duck flapping his little wings a mile-a-minute as he crosses the pond in the distance. About 10 feet short of the WD box, he back-peddles just slightly to slow down just enought to shoot right into the hole of the box like a laser guided rocket. Gone. I watched for about 20 more minutes. Nothing more. I cannot say that I have any idea what kinda duck went in there....only the assumption...? AWESOME...I wish you could get a game camera focused on the box so you could ID it for us? That is such a great story BSKI.
Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~ Henry David Thoreau
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 3,135
Ambassador Lunker
|
Ambassador Lunker
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 3,135 |
Brettski, looks like you might have a laser guided wood duck, one other possibility is a Hooded Merganser, either way it would be great.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
|
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2 |
Both of my wood duck boxes are being used this year. I was at our hunting cabin yesterday and today and checked them. The hens didn't seem to be sitting yet, so I am assuming they are still laying. Three drake mallards were fearless of me. I guess no ladies for them this year...
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 3,135
Ambassador Lunker
|
Ambassador Lunker
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 3,135 |
CJ how do you check your boxes, is there a hinged panel or do you use a mirror?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,902
Lunker
|
Lunker
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,902 |
$100 to a donut it's a woodie. That's exactly they're mo.
Pond Boss Subscriber & Books Owner
If you can read this ... thank a teacher. Since it's in english ... thank our military! Ric
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
|
Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame Lunker
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,458 Likes: 2 |
Just sit and watch... Just the way the females were acting. This is the 5th year the boxes have been up and the 3rd year birds are using them, so I kinda know what to look for from past experience.
They do have a screw off front to clean them, but I don't want to mess with them this time of year for fear of spooking the hens...
|
|
|
Moderated by Bill Cody, Bruce Condello, catmandoo, Chris Steelman, Dave Davidson1, esshup, ewest, FireIsHot, Omaha, Sunil, teehjaeh57
There are no members with birthdays on this day. |
|
BG sex?
by ewest - 05/16/24 11:32 AM
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|