Airport Island Habitat for Trail

From: Keith & Sandy Kridler txbluebirder"at"sbcglobal.net
Sent: Tuesday, November 04, 2003 7:52 AM
Subject: airport island habitat

[Note from webmaster: some of this post is repeated at Pairing, Part 7]

Habitat of a proposed bluebird trail should always be evaluated before making hard, fast decisions on number of boxes. Issues of whether to pair or not to pair should be based on expected numbers of the different cavity nesters and the micro habitat each species will need.

Mt. Pleasant just moved their old airport and built a new airport here and they want a bluebird trail.....They bought over 2,000 acres with about 1,200 pasture land and 800 heavily forested and bulldozed and burned all but one small block of trees....Bluebirds nesting around the hangers and runways will have to fly up to half a mile to land in the first tree! IF we had tree swallows we have room for several hundred tree swallow nestboxes and GOOD locations for about 20 bluebird boxes, about 40 nestboxes in the woods surrounding the airport for chickadees, titmice, flying squirrels and other cavity nesting woodland species. Installing nestboxes on an island is intriguing as you could observe a true micro habitat and how nestboxes will affect species numbers!

Dick Tuttle observed in Ohio that in open areas with high tree swallow numbers that bluebirds preferred to have a large tree near their nestbox where the male could swoop down out of the branches and drop on any bird attempting to enter his box. The further away from good observation perches and more open areas become the domain of the tree swallows. Don Wilkin's in Minnesota never paired his bluebird nestboxes and he raised more bluebirds than anyone else in the state in the 80's and 90's. By placing a nestbox where tree swallows could not maneuver well around trees and placing them in small clearings he was able to choose or predict whether he would raise bluebirds or tree swallows. He also raised more tree swallows than anyone else by placing 6-10 nestboxes in loose grids on 20 to 40 acre clearings near water.

By looking at available habitat and areas where they will allow you to install nestboxes and then your ability to build and monitor a given number of nestboxes will determine how "free" you are with mounting locations. I would NOT start a new trail out by pairing EVERY nest site! I would scatter nestboxes around the entire airport area this fall. Then in EARLY spring monitor closely to see how many bluebirds are staking claim to nestboxes BEFORE the swallows arrive. They will choose the best habitat and best spacing between other bluebirds early. NOW in these locations I would set up loose pods of nestboxes where cavity nesters other than tree swallows are attempting to nest. I would vary height and spacing distances on each pod to see very quickly what your birds prefer! Near the hangers I would install nestboxes to be able to trap off existing House Sparrows as usually bluebirds will be nesting in open buildings on rafters or on ledges in these buildings just like the house sparrows are doing.

EDUCATE the public on this island as to what YOU are doing and what OTHERS can do on the island! Is there a "land owner's" association? Is there a local meeting area? Is there a Board of Directors to the airport or island? NABS has slide programs you can rent or simply buy one of the VHS video's on bluebirds to loan to groups! I am scheduled to speak to 96 students at our High School tomorrow and will break them down to 4 or 5 groups and spend the day at school discussing "cavity nesters". We will follow this up in a couple of months (after the teacher has them do research and reports on this subject) and build nestboxes for those with GOOD habitat and those that don't will "donate" their nestboxes to trails or people with GOOD habitat. For "trail" nestboxes be sure and choose a well made but SIMPLE design so that anyone with a few simple tools can copy and build more nestboxes!

Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas

From: Paula PaulaZ"at"columbus.rr.com]
Sent: Wednesday, November 05, 2003 2:27 PM
Subject: Airport trail

Keith, I am hopeful for new trail this spring. I contacted Dean Sheldon earlier this summer and he told me about the trail on Kelley's Island. He said it took a few years, but they have EABL's nesting on this trail now. Kelley's is close to South Bass. We just built summer home there this past year and I have not seen any EABL, but residents told me they have seen them in their yards. I heard one last weekend also. What I know we DO have is swallows - tree, barn, martins and lots of them.

Airport at South Bass Island is good habitat for EABL. To better describe layout, north (long) side of airport is bordered by "major road" that runs length of island and into town - actually not so major, but due to human vandalism on island, I would be very leary about putting boxes here. There is a 4' high chain link fence "protecting" the paved parking for small private aircraft right along road right-of-way. The island visitors in the summer get a little rowdy here. We have no street sign on our street (stolen) and a drunk tried to steal my husband's airplane this summer (hopped in, started it up and taxied it into two cars). There is also one (only one) old hangar on the north side. It is open and I have seen house sparrows and barn swallows nesting in it. This would be a great place for boxes to trap sparrows. South (other long) side of airport is bordered by houses (just two lines of homes with single lane gravel/paved roadway in between). There are large, but spaced established trees in most of these backyards and on this side of the airport near perimeter. Most lots have purple martin houses on them and martins are very active here. On south side of homes is Lake Erie (we can see the lake from our front windows and the airport from the back). West (short) side has seldom traveled roadway (for homes on south side) with a few smaller trees (about 5-8' high) planted here on airport property. Across roadway is heavily wooded/brush. East (short) side also has roadway that services a restaurant/bar. Area here is wide open - no trees.

Of course expanse in between is mowed grass and one runway & taxiway. I was planning on putting pairs of boxes approximately 100 yards apart on west and south sides near large, established tree where possible. Due to location of trees, air traffic and vandalism concerns, these seem like the logical locations to me. Would you recommend that I start with only one box at these locations and add a box (or even boxes) to form a grid if tree swallows show interest? Any other comments or recommendations appreciated.

Thanks, Paula Z Powell (Central) Ohio

Airport Island Habitat for Trail

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