Birdhouse opening sizes per species

[Bob10]

we have some small birds that moved into the house I made with my son for scouts. raccoons tried to clear out the nest luckily missed the mark.  Now we have huge blue birds that squawk something awful I am  considering making houses for them and giving them to neighbors a few blocks away.  I have to get more info on what it takes to make them happy to move in down the street.  

[Duane N]

we have some small birds that moved into the house I made with my son for scouts. raccoons tried to clear out the nest luckily missed the mark.  Now we have huge blue birds that squawk something awful I am  considering making houses for them and giving them to neighbors a few blocks away.  I have to get more info on what it takes to make them happy to move in down the street.  

You'd be wasting your time trying to get them to move down the street by building them nest boxes....it seems Stellar Jay's like to build their own nests on tree branches using leaves and mud and don't nest in boxes.  The Blue Jays we have on the East Coast look similar to your Jay and are probably just as annoying and loud. 

[Dusty Workshop]

Thanks for all the great replies!

Very much appreciated.

[mr_skittle]

This is great. A thread that combines my two favorite hobbies, birds and boards.

The size of the opening kind of has a double purpose. The ideas is to fit the bird you want and exclude the birds you don't want. If you had a squirrel make a bird house it's home, chances are the hole was much to large. It's a pretty common mistake. Most larger birds, like Jay's, do prefer to build new every year. I'd say a robin is the largest bird you can get to use a homemade nest platform. (not a birdhouse though) It is true that a house wren will nest just about anywhere. They actually start building a number of false nests during courtship and finally settle in on one to lay eggs. I'll also put a plug in for Carol Henderson's book. I've actually met him and have seen him present a couple of times. His knowledge of all things birds is remarkable. I think the book is a little dated but building for wildlife is a pretty timeless thing.

[badwhiskey]

In addition to the size of the hole and the dimensions of the house overall, the placement of the birdhouse is very important. For blue birds we install the houses in pairs about 6 feet apart. A swallow family will take one and a bluebird family will take the other. Also don’t use paint or preservatives, just natural cedar.

[mr_skittle]

In addition to the size of the hole and the dimensions of the house overall, the placement of the birdhouse is very important. For blue birds we install the houses in pairs about 6 feet apart. A swallow family will take one and a bluebird family will take the other. Also don’t use paint or preservatives, just natural cedar.

Very good point about placment. Getting birds to nest around your home takes more thsn just throwing up a house.

[Gary G™]

Easy to print:

http://www.audubon.org/sites/default/fil...hart_0.pdf

[Bucko]

The Screech Owl photo is darn right well done.

[GeorgeV]

I once had a document that had suggested bird house opening sizes based on what species of bird you wanted to make the house for.
I have searched the Internet but can't find this info.

Does anyone have a list like this?

Thank you in advance

Check the Audubon Society https://nestwatch.org/learn/all-about-birdhouses/

Opening sizes by species.