Bluebird House Placement:  Country Locations

Bluebird house placement can be more difficult than with other types of birds as bluebirds are generally fussier about the location of their nests. As bluebirds can’t build their own nests they often use, for example, the hole in a rotting tree or an old hole made by a woodpecker. The increase in the human population and the spread of urban communities has lead to a lot of these natural homes being lost. This in turn has lead to a decrease in bluebird numbers in recent years. Many people are trying to save this declining species by building bluebird houses to try to attract this species to nest in their gardens. Bluebird house placement is very important as it requires all the elements that bluebirds need in order to nest. 

Features of Bluebird House Placement

There are various aspects to consider in bluebird house placement. Bluebirds do not like to nest in urban areas. The area you are trying to attract them to would need to be rural otherwise the birds will not choose to nest there. There should be some low lying vegetation or a field, coupled with a few trees, to allow the birds to sit in the lower branches of the trees and search the fields for insects. Although bluebirds need low lying vegetation and some trees you should not place their house too close to areas densely populated with trees. Wrens like to live in these types of areas and so bluebird house placement should be at least one hundred feet from a densely wooded area, so that the wrens do not take over the house. You should also take into account any nearby barns. Sparrows like to nest there and so will take over the bluebird nest if it is placed too close to a barn. This is essential in creating a sparrow resistant bluebird house.

The best type of area for bluebird house placement is an uncluttered area such as a meadow, cemetery or orchard. Open areas near pastures or highways also make good locations. Also remember to place bluebird houses at least one hundred yards from each other to avoid fights between the birds. A good tip is to place some other bird houses in the vicinity of the bluebird house. This allows sparrows and other animals, such as squirrels, to live without disturbing the bluebirds.