MY INITIATIVES

FUN FACT: What you are seeing in this photo is called a murmuration, when a large group of birds, often starlings, fly and change direction seamlessly together!

Habitat Building

The Inspiration

Just some of what I saw during monitoring. For many of them, I witnessed their growth from the first egg to their fledging!

I was inspired to carry out the idea of constructing and installing nest boxes as part of my project after volunteering as a Nest Box Monitor at The Watershed Institute. I will be basing the design and build of my nest boxes off of these, which means that they will host the same species!

The Action

I am constructing 6 nest boxes to install in one of my favorite local places to visit the birds, Millstone Park in Millstone Township, New Jersey. This will allow for dedicated nesting space for songbirds to raise their young, ensuring that populations have a chance to grow without the threat of habitat destruction or predation. Check out some features that make these nest boxes the perfect, safe home for our feathered friends:

An entrance hole just large enough for the intended species (Eastern Bluebird, Tree Swallow, House Wren, Chickadee) to fit in. The extra box around it is a predator guard, as the added depth makes it more difficult for other animal species to enter.

The intended bird species for these nest boxes do not need perches to enter, feed young, or build the nest. Omitting this design also decreases the ability of unwanted birds or critters who would need a perch to access the nest box.

The nest boxes are built with cedar wood, which is both long-lasting, even through weather events, and naturally pest-resistant. This means that the boxes will be resilient without having to treat them with chemicals that may harm the birds.

Education and Engagement

People will most care about something once they are knowledgeable about it. So, I have made it one of my main goals to share the knowledge of birds and their struggles with community members, younger Girl Scout Troops, policy-makers, and people just like you!

The impact of education will come from your actions! Real change will be made when community members and beyond decide to take action and implement the simple changes and/or additions to their lives that can and will lead bird populations to increase.