Leaking box... help! (1 Viewer)

[dohcsvt]

I have 2 nest boxes, 1 is full of black capped chickadee young and is in great shape. However, the second has 3 eastern bluebird eggs in it and I have discovered it is leaking. I don’t think incubation has started yet, so I hope to help without disturbing the natural flow of things.

I have read that leaking boxes can be repaired with silicone caulk, but the parents spend a lot of time on top of the box and I don’t want to get it on them. Would it be ok to try and caulk this at sundown one night or will the fumes harm the parents? Any insight would be appreciated.

 

[etudiant]

I'd not be too worried about leaks, the mother bird protects the eggs during incubation.
The main concern is that moisture not build up beneath the nest, which is why good drainage is the critical element.
Caulks outgas during their curing period, so I'd not want to use them while the nest is active in any case, but working on the nest while the parents are settling in for the night risks driving them away permanently, it shows the nest is unsafe.

 

[KC Foggin]

I tend to agree with etudiant.

I would wait until the current nesting project is over with and the fledglings have left and then repair it.

 

[dohcsvt]

Thanks for the feed back. The box has good drainage, I had read that if the young get wet they may die from hypothermia. Sounds like you guys feel this will be ok as is. Hopefully I am just overreacting. After I posted, I thought that I may place a piece of tape over the crack... thoughts on that?

Just leave it alone for now... good bird parents will persevere and succeed?

 

[KC Foggin]

Duct tape would probably be a quick fix to hold the leakage over for a bit. Good idea.