Wood duck boxes and mallard hen nests

So a few of us got together today and built wood duck boxes and mallard hen nests. As I was gathering material and planning for the build, I learned that hen nests have a hatch success rate of close to 80% as compared to less than 10% for ground nests. And that hens will return to their previously used nests. Plans are available online through Ducks Unlimited and Delta Waterfowl along with interesting facts and information. So get off the covid couch and get building! Great day spent with friends and Winnie and us are looking forward to the fall.

Nice work cj.

Nice Work!
Our chapter is getting out next weekend to check our boxes. Need to get going on building some more though. Demand is outstripping supply at the moment, so we need to get caught up.

Our group here in B.C. found the nest tubes didn’t work. The eagles and herons used them more to roost on. Our nest boxes however have been highly successful. There’s been a significant increase in wood ducks in our area. Check out pittwaterfowlers

Great website! We wired in some spikes to out mallard nests to keep the larger birds off and hopeful that will work.

To the OP - what did you use for bedding material in the hen houses???

Just used hay and filled half to 2/3 rd full as per DU and Delta Waterfowl directions. Straw was used when rolling the metal fencing to form the exterior of the nest.

Very useful info. Thanks. I hate to admit it, but I killed off a duck's brood by using sawdust and too high in the box. :(

When we were building the boxes, we had read that wood chips only and not sawdust for that very reason.

So went out today in -20 but sunny weather and checked some of those nests we built. Out of 6 mallard hen nests and 3 wood duck boxes, we had 5 that were nested in. One confirmed wood duck and one confirmed mallard nest

[Attachment 43254