Although barn owls will nest in a cavity facing any direction, there does seem to be a preference for easterly facing directions (NE, SE, or E). This is a thermoregulatory choice—boxes facing east receive warm morning sun but then face away from the southwest when the sun is hottest. But, again, they are know to nest in any direction.
Over the past two years, forest fires, hurricanes, Covid, and a work shortage have conspired to cause a scarcity of good plywood. And the prices have tripled in that time while the quality and availability has plummeted. We will begin offering the Wooden Box whenever these conditions improve. Right now, we do not see a lot of change.
If you have not received a tracking number email, then your order is still being prepared for shipment. Tracking emails are not generated until our shipping carrier (UPS, Fedex, or USPS) actually picks up the package. However, once they do, the tracking number is automatically sent to the email address you provided when you ordered. However, always check your junk or spam folders in your email platform if you are expecting a tracking email because automatically sent emails often are blocked by firewalls.
The best practice is to clean out any nest box that has been occupied after the breeding season. You simply remove the front, slide out the inner liner, dump it, and place more mulch inside. This will safely be done anywhere from September to November. However, since barn owls sometimes breed in the offseason, if you do encounter birds, eggs, or chicks at the time of cleaning, just put off cleaning until the next year.
You will occasionally hear that barn owl boxes need no bedding—that they use their own pellets for bedding. But this will not be enough to cover the floor by the time the eggs are laid. Always place 3-4 inches of garden mulch across the entire floor. This mulch should not be shredded, but be large pieced. Bark mulch made from pine, fir, or hardwood is best. Ace Hardware sells a product called Western Bark Mulch which is ideal.
We have seen barn owls nesting as little as ten feet apart and there are plenty of instances in which several pairs were found nesting in a single barn. To stay on the safe side, we would recommend separating boxes by 50 to 100 feet minimum.
You will see a lot of references to heights of 10, 12 or even greater heights. The truth is that barn owls will nest at 8’ quite comfortably. Our studies showed that boxes at this height had high rates of occupancy. Eight feet reduces the cost and labor involved yet satisfies the needs of the barn owls to feel protected.
Our Screech Owl, Kestrel, Bluebird, Wren Houses, and Pole Kits all go out within one to four days. Our Barn Owl Boxes take longer to manufacture and therefore may ship between two and ten days after the order is placed.
We do not always have coupon codes available, however our coupon codes are most often sent out in our newsletters so it is a good idea to sign up for our newsletters on our website — they go out every month or so. Coupons are also advertised in promotions on our Barn Owl Box Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/Barn-Owl-Box-Company-121089227325 so we invite you to follow our page and you will receive notifications of new postings that contain coupon codes.
The answer is that barn owls are highly capable of finding potential nesting sites—they are on the lookout much of the year. The dark entrance hole is enough to grab their interest and so all you need to do is make sure the entrance hole is visible from nearby open areas where barn owls will pass through. Placing mulch in the box can be beneficial too—barn owls like to have a softer substrate than the hard floor of a nest box. Other than that, essentially it is “build it and they will come.”
We will be placing links to download installation directions for each of our products here. We will also be providing links to YouTube videos of how to install our products.
The answer is that the adults that have successfully bred will remain year round. Every year after they have fledged, the young tend to disperse to other regions. Some may return in the spring, but many do not. Instead, first year birds from other areas migrate into your region. In this way, barn owl populations remain genetically diverse.
