It’s a good time to prepare for the 2025 nesting season, by cleaning and maintaining nest boxes, and maybe adding a new nest box, like the Duncraft Chalet Bluebird House & Pole. A convertible nest/roost box provides a nesting site during spring and summer for cavity nesting birds; and when the front panel is reversed, it provides a warmer winter roost site.

It’s a good time to think about nest boxes that will provide nesting sites for cavity nesting birds during the upcoming 2025 nesting season. While northern birders might wonder about the timing, some cavity nesting birds in the Sunbelt will soon be searching for nest sites for the soon-to-begin nesting season. Essentially, nest boxes can be divided into 2 groups: Small nest boxes for songbird-sized cavity nesting birds like wrens, chickadees, bluebirds, and swallows; and Big nest boxes for large cavity-nesting birds including Wood Ducks, American Kestrels, and a variety of owls.

Even if you live where there are cold weather winters, it’s good to think about the 2025 nesting season so you have things ready; after all, some owls begin nesting early, and there’s always the chance that a bird will use one of your nest boxes for a winter roost site. That means your nest boxes can be spring-summer nesting sites and winter roosting sites – providing double-duty benefits for cavity nesting birds.

Whether you prefer songbird nest boxes, or big nest boxes for owls and ducks – or a mix of big and small nest boxes, it’s important to plan ahead with regard to the size of your yard and where it’s located geographically. And if you are contemplating adding your first nest box to your property, you need to do a little research about what cavity nesting birds you can expect to attract, and which nest box is the best to use and where to install it.

– First of all, a nest box and a bird house are the same thing; we tend to use the term nest box.

– To learn more about nest boxes, bird houses, and cavity nesting birds, a great source of information is NestWatch, another arm of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, which provides a wealth of information and sources for getting started or improving your nest box activities.

– You may be surprised by all the different kinds of birds you can benefit by providing the right nest boxes positioned in the right locations, and NestWatch provides the specifics needed to attract for individual species at Right Bird, Right House - NestWatch

– Each nest box or bird house should have a hinged panel that allows you to view and access the interior. If your nest box doesn’t allow access, it’s easy to remove a couple screws on the front of it, then add a hinge on one side and a latch on the other side.

– The newest wrinkle on nest boxes are the Convertible Nesting/Roosting Boxes. The idea behind these new options is that the front panel is reversible so you can have the entrance on top during the nesting season, and at the bottom during the roosting season. When the entrance hole is positioned at the bottom of the box, the heat created by the bird or birds that roost there will rise to the top of the box without escaping, which it will with the entrance hole at the top. A simple elevated perch is added to the interior during the roosting season too.

– Although nesting/roosting boxes are only available for small songbirds commercially now, you can easily convert any nest box into a nesting/roosting box by removing a couple screws and switching the location of the entrance hole. The other option is to build your own box with a reversible front panel (see our recent article at Fall & Winter ‘Convertible’ Roost Boxes | Birding Wire).

– If you haven’t inspected your nest boxes inside and out before winter, now’s the time. If you already have nest boxes in your yard, on your property, or on a nest box trail, it’s important to clean and maintain each nest box so they are ready for spring nesting, or even winter roosting.

– Seasoned birders like to remove old nests and other material from each nest box during fall, which is a good plan to control mites, blow fly larvae, bees, mice, and other potential small invaders that might be present after the nesting season.

– It’s also a good time to make simple repairs; replace a screw, fix a hinge, or replace a nest box entirely. If a nest box hasn’t been attracting nesting birds you may even want to move it to a better location.

– Be sure to check your predator proofing also, to ensure it is still functional to keep raccoons, snakes, squirrels, chipmunks, and other potential predators away from each nest box. Predator proofing is essential to ensuring your cavity nesting birds, their eggs, and their nestlings are safe during the period they occupy your nest box.

– Thanksgiving weekend, or any time, is a good time to build a new nest box or two. Make it a fun project to share with family members, especially children or grandchildren.

– Scout leaders and teachers may also find building nest boxes a fun and useful project to share with students and scouts. Some nature centers offer nest box or bird house building activities, or you can suggest the idea of adding such a project at a local nature center, refuge visitor center, bird observatory, Audubon chapter, or a birding club to name a few.

– If it’s a better bet for you to buy a new nest box for bluebirds or screech owls and other cavity nesting birds, check out the impressive variety of nest boxes available from BestNest at BestNest.com: Bird Houses. Buy a Bird House at BestNest.com!

– To learn more about the impressive new Convertible Nest/Roost Boxes, refer to BestNest at Coveside Convertible Bird House/Winter Roost at BestNest.com and Duncraft at Duncraft Convertible Roost House

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