Wood Duck Boxes

Abalone · 03-29-2007, 01:48 PM

Are they nesting yet ? Is it too late to hang a box ?

I heard the nest in March

I put two up last summer and am looking forward to checking them soon.

Ethical hunter · 03-29-2007, 01:54 PM

The Hoodies tend to nest earlier than the woodies. In my boxes the hoodies get started sometime in april and the woodies usualy get going sometime in May so no its not too late.

I would check the boxes you put up last summer to make sure they are in good repair, have clean cedar shavings as bedding, and that bees have not taken it over.

Good luck

EH

scottishsetter · 03-29-2007, 02:33 PM

Could you give us the dimensions and placement tips
[10'to 20' over water?]

Ethical hunter · 03-29-2007, 03:50 PM

It has been a while since I built one and cannot recall the exact dimensions off the top of my head. sides are made with 1"x12" cedar so the inside dimensions would be12"x10" and that is plenty of space. My boxes are 24" tall. The roof needs to have a decent overhang (2") to keep the rain out, sloping roof helps as well. The dimension of the enterence hole is what I am not sure of 3"X4" I think, it is small enough to keep coons out. The little ducklings need a "ladder" to help them crawl to the enterance, I carve a "ladder" into the cedar on the inside of the box up to the hole and have never found a duckling in a box that failed to make the climb out.

I clean and fix my boxes every year. I remove all the cedar shavings litter and add new. sometimes there are unhatched rotten eggs left in from the previous year. Ducks tend not to use a box with rotten eggs, they need to be cleaned out before breeding season starts. I put an access hatch on the bottom side of my boxes for easy cleaning.

As far as placing them goes I prefer to place mine on a 10-12' pole over the water. Putting them on trees is easy but the racoons get into them, maybe not the first year or two but after that the coons find um and tear into them. An 2" aluminum pole is good for mounting the box on. Yes it is expensive but worth it - it will never rot and the coons cant climb it. Old steel pipe would work as well but I wouldnt want to carry it very far.

A cedar box on an aluminum pole will last a long time, its expensive but worth it in the long run.

EH

Chesapeake · 03-29-2007, 04:03 PM

This construction plan looks to me to be the fast and easy if the right wood can be found.

http://www.utm.edu/departments/cece/...dnestaid.shtml

scottishsetter · 03-29-2007, 06:15 PM

OK; Hoodies and Woodies?
I know woodies but what are Hoodies? The pair on our pond now might be this Hoody as the male doesn't have that color of a Woody; but they flush out before I can get too close to tell. Help!

PS We have raised 10 mallard ducks on the pond two years ago and have two pair this year as well as a pair of geese.

Edit: Hooded Mergansers; they eat fish! Not good for the little small mouth bass in the pond.

Old Soldier · 03-30-2007, 08:33 AM

We have a couple boxes left over from the Capitol Chapter OHA project if you are in near Salem send me a PM and I will tell you where to pick them up. It is getting late for this year but they would be there for next year.

Ethical hunter · 03-30-2007, 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Soldier

We have a couple boxes left over from the Capitol Chapter OHA project if you are in near Salem send me a PM and I will tell you where to pick them up. It is getting late for this year but they would be there for next year.

Get the boxes up in the next week in the right location and they will get used this year. I have put boxes out in late May that were occupied by woodies in early June.

EH

Ni! · 03-30-2007, 02:34 PM

I put up a couple last year but they didn't get used. I've seen some woodies on the pond several times this year so I'm hoping they'll use them this year.

If I can figure out exactly what they want I'll put up even more, but at $25 or so per box I want to make sure I'm doing it right.

Old Soldier · 03-30-2007, 03:29 PM

If you have a pond leave some cover over the water for the little ones. A guy I gave some to a few years ago cleaned his pond up to look good and removed all the cover around the edges. Watched a hawk take and little duck as soon as they came out of the box and followed mom and the little guys 1.5 miles to the Willamette River. He called and wanted to know why the left his property. Now he knows and I get a report from him every year.

Abalone · 04-04-2007, 05:51 AM

Thanks old soldier. I picked up some boxes last night thanks to Joe and we are going to put some up next week. I talked with a wildlife expert and he told me I still have about three weeks to get them up. A couple of things he told me. The ducks don't like boxes that are pointed south.
Mount them about ten to twelve feet off the ground. Boxes can be placed close together. He has seen three boxes mounted very close together and each box contained a pair of ducks. It is difficult to tell of a box is occupied as the bird tend not to fly in and out like other birds.

Many other types of critters will use the boxes including Owls, Squirrels, Bats etc..

Try to get some pictures of them once we get them up.

Thanks again Old Soldier.

Riverteeth · 04-04-2007, 02:00 PM

About placing the boxes close together:

I know there can be many schools of thought, and "how close is close", but let me offer the following:

What I read many years ago in an Audubon magazine was not to pack them in too close. Wood Ducks can get territorial, and will reduce nesting success.

Now with only three boxes, it probably wouldn't be an issue. But I would guess around 10, it might start to be.

Just food for thought.

Old Soldier · 04-04-2007, 03:53 PM

Generaly you want some distance between the boxes 100 yards or so. Now having said that I know of a yard on Rickerall Creek with two or three in the same tree and all are being used.

There will be boxes available next winter generaly the first week of February. We picked up the wood for them today and have it in storage. We encourage families to come and put them together and then take them to put the up. Kids are welcome.

If I remember I will post the plan next January.

loper · 04-06-2007, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Soldier

If I remember I will post the plan next January.

Don't worry, we'll remind you.

Tvfowlhunter · 04-08-2007, 04:13 PM

[quote=scottishsetter;1476185]Could you give us the dimensions and placement tips
[10'to 20' over water?

ME too please

tvfowlhunter

Beeatease · 04-09-2007, 01:42 PM

This is one of several I googled:

http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/b...uck/wdnbox.htm

loper · 04-09-2007, 03:30 PM

or this one:

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/store/diy...k/woodduck.pdf

Old Soldier · 04-09-2007, 03:32 PM

There are a couple of things missing on the website the front should be angled by making the top of the sides about 1" wider than the bottom of the side and then put screen on the inside of the box from the bottom to the hole so the little ducks can get out.
ODFW has good plans.