Check out our Nesting Behavior Chart to see when and how local birds start searching for and making nests! We also invite you to look at our Bird House Specifications guide to see what houses will work for you and your birds!

It may seem early, but It’s the perfect time to invite birds to nest in your yard by installing nest boxes and offering nesting foods to help birds thrive during nesting season. It's also a great time to clean out your existing boxes for the new season! Enjoy attracting them to your yard for a more intimate look while they raise families.

Functional Houses
It is important that functional houses meet the criteria of the proper housing situation for birds. It is important that houses have the following characteristics:

1. Ventilation: It is important for functional houses to have good ventilation. Panels of wood that are ¾ inches thick help provide insulation from the heat; recycled plastic should be at least ½” thick. Holes near the top of the house allow for the heat to escape.
2. Easy Clean Out: A side panel that opens allows for easy clean out of the nest at the end of the season which helps to keep the pest population down. (Some Wild Birds Unlimited houses allow for viewing or photographing of the birds without disturbing them by offering a top opening panel.)
3. Adequate Drainage: Holes at the bottom corners allow for drainage. Drainage holes in the middle of the bottom will not adequately allow for drainage.
4. Fledgling Ladder: It is a good idea (especially for bluebird houses) to provide either slashes or a ladder to help the fledglings leave the house.
5. Functional houses should fit the requirements for the kind of bird that is desired and should be mounted in a manner that is safe for that kind of bird. Learn more about our Nesting Boxes or visit our store for more information.

Decorative Functional Houses
Decorative functional houses are often painted or decorated. They should perform as basic houses for customers who wish to provide housing for the birds, but want a more decorative look for their yards. These are also used as decoration inside homes and offices. This category of houses may include houses that are decorated but do not necessarily fill all of the functional housing requirements. It is still important for this category of houses to fulfill basic requirements such as ventilation, drainage, clean-out and basic size requirements.

Decorative Houses
Decorative houses are not functional houses. They do not meet enough of the requirements to be considered proper housing for birds. They should only be used as decoration for inside the home, office, etc. Decorative houses are great for nature lovers to bring a little bit of the outdoors inside.

WBU nest boxes have been specially designed and constructed based on species-specific requirements. Our nest boxes have good ventilation, drainage, insulation, protection from the elements and predators, easy cleaning and durability. Check out our Bird Houses & Nesting products to see what we have in stock! Foods that nesting birds seek include protein and calcium and are found in a number of WBU offerings such as any of the WBU No-Mess Blends, any of the Jim’s Birdacious foods, select WBU suet doughs as well as mealworms.