It's a Jungle Out There! Nest Box Experiences and Advice Part #2

Screech Owls in our suburban neighborhood have a tough life that typically goes unseen by humans. Their biggest challenge is to find a good nesting site each winter - habitat loss of old growth trees and dead trees most likely to have suitable nesting cavities is a big factor in Screech Owl decline in some areas. But finding a suitable nesting cavity is just the start of a perilous journey to reproduce. There is competition and danger! A nesting cavity in a tree is easily accessible by a wide variety of other creatures.The following pictures were taken in our backyard in the past year. These first five want to eat the eggs and/or owlets:

Florida Corn or Red Rat Snake

Invasive Monitor Lizard

Red Shouldered Hawk 

Rats in the Nest Box!!

Raccoons

Rats also want the nest box for themselves, these are not big-city rats. They live in trees, especially Palmetto Trees and waterways everywhere - you just never see them at night. They suffer about a 90% mortality rate each year and they desperately want a place to hide in the daytime and an unoccupied nestbox is perfect. They can displace the owls or eat the eggs or small owlets in an unguarded moment - not to mention they make a mess of the box when they move in. The irony is that the beautiful and docile constrictor the Red "Rat" snake is often killed by homeowners when seen - think about that if you don't like rats - this 4-5 foot rat snake looks very well-fed. Large predatory lizards and Raccoons like to hang out in trees, and I haven't include pictures of cats either feral or pets without bells on their collars. Big hawks like this Red-Shouldered variety hang out in the same trees and the smaller Kestrels compete for the same nesting sites - and at night the great horned owl is a threat to eat its smaller brethren.

Then there are the Africanized Bees and Wasps - and the most dreaded of all - the squirrels - they want the nest box. 

Important tip - If you make your own nest box - don't make it out of white pine from the home store - insects love it - makes great bee hives as bees need a place to live to! Either buy a good cedar wood nest box or make your own nest box out of cedar. Cedar contains a natural insect repellent and looks great as it ages. I have never seen bugs in our Stovall Owl box in two years that weren't brought in by the owls. "Wood Screech Owl Nest Box" (Google Affiliate Ad)

The Dreaded Squirrel

Homemade Pine Nest Box - Africanized Bees Love it!

All things considered one wonders how many Screech Owls are unsuccessful at claiming and defended one of the scarce natural sites. Many owls probably end up using less than desirable nesting sites.  However, there is more to it than just putting out a nest box. One of the biggest challenges is properly locating ones nest box - each site is somewhat unique - there is no set answer. Perfect is not usually attainable, but good enough often is.  More on the challenges we faced, including dealing with squirrels, the arch nemesis of owl nest boxing in Part #3.