LATE WINTER RITUAL—
Wednesday, the Wood Duck box got its spring house cleaning. We are in a prolonged warming period and this project is best accomplished while it is safe to walk on the pond’s ice.
Waiting for the ice to thaw and doing this task by boat often brings us perilously close to the Woody’s breeding season.
I started at Reeder’s Lumber yard in Butler where they graciously gave me a grocery bag full of wood shavings.
Then it was a trek across the lagoon inlet to the box which is located on a post along the east shore of the pond. Surprisingly, several inches of watery slush already exist under the pond’s snow covered ice.
Half of the wood bottom of the box is hinged so removing one screw allows that to drop. I can then reach into the 4” entry hole near the top of the box and scrape out the old shavings; replacing that debris with about five inches of fresh bedding which Momma Woody will arrange and supplement to suit her fancy.
Now is a good time to similarly clean out any bird nesting boxes you may have. Old nesting material combines with feathers, egg shells and other detritus to make a damp and unhealthy box interior.
Your feathered friends will appreciate your effort and likely reward you with a family of hatchlings in just a few months.
Wednesday, the Wood Duck box got its spring house cleaning. We are in a prolonged warming period and this project is best accomplished while it is safe to walk on the pond’s ice.
Waiting for the ice to thaw and doing this task by boat often brings us perilously close to the Woody’s breeding season.
I started at Reeder’s Lumber yard in Butler where they graciously gave me a grocery bag full of wood shavings.
Then it was a trek across the lagoon inlet to the box which is located on a post along the east shore of the pond. Surprisingly, several inches of watery slush already exist under the pond’s snow covered ice.
Half of the wood bottom of the box is hinged so removing one screw allows that to drop. I can then reach into the 4” entry hole near the top of the box and scrape out the old shavings; replacing that debris with about five inches of fresh bedding which Momma Woody will arrange and supplement to suit her fancy.
Now is a good time to similarly clean out any bird nesting boxes you may have. Old nesting material combines with feathers, egg shells and other detritus to make a damp and unhealthy box interior.
Your feathered friends will appreciate your effort and likely reward you with a family of hatchlings in just a few months.
2 comments:
It's good to see that the dam is holding water... Has Max ventured out on the ice?
CW
Yes; last fall's repair of the crawfish burrows under the spill pipe was successful. My contractor (son Brian) dug slit trenches across the upper and lower ends of the pipe and backfilled the excavations with yards of concrete.
No; Max is not very adventuresome with the pond--regardless if it is in its solid or liquid state.
--Love Dad
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