Sparrow hawks don’t build a nest, as such. To build this platform, you'll need to cut nine pine 2-by-4-inches wide, 2-foot long lumber pieces. I trust the wood to put up with that and the rough roads we sometimes drive over to get to hunting grounds. Make sure there are no sharp edges before introducing the bird. Lay each 22" x 24" piece of plywood over each frame. Make sure her box is changed daily if she uses it daily. On the 22" side of the top, start the screws at 7" and 15" to start with. Fasten the pieces together with corrosion-resistant screws. Be sure the bird has proper ventilation while in the box! Some like the easiest and cheapest solutions and have recommended a paper towel shipping box lined with newspaper. Measure in from that edge 5". A hawk box that is exactly 12" wide on the inside will exactly fit newspaper, when folded. The depression itself is the nest. Before screwing the pieces of wood together, drill the holes first. Be Her Village. There are also small fans made for dog kennels that could be rigged up for this when traveling in hot weather. For birds like Goshawks with delicate feathers, this can definitely save a bird from further feather damage. You can't mix the water soluble stains with the non-water soluble varnishes, so you will have to select one line or the other. To build this platform, you'll need to cut nine pine 2-by-4-inches wide, 2-foot long lumber pieces. Although there is plenty of head room, I will make the next one with about one more inch. A computer fan can be installed at the top of the box to ventilate and circulate the air. A hawk's nesting platform should measure 2 feet square. Nesting Material. I would like to also put a locking mechanism hidden inside the frame of the box so the leash can be secured and locked down there. Simple adjustments, even some cardboard taped in place, can help prevent a bird from taking a wrong step. If I load Patty in beak-first, then she has to turn around inside the box. I realized this design piece too late and had to drill these holes much later, so the following pictures will not show these holes. Hawk owls build nests in evergreen trees, in natural and abandoned tree cavities, sometimes in old hawk nests and in bird boxes too. PART OF WILD SKY MEDIA | FAMILY & PARENTING, 50 Birds: 2' X 2' Nesting Platform for Red-tailed Hawks and Great Horned Owls. Hawks living in cold climates head south for the winter, flying north again in the spring to breed. Screech Owl or American Kestrel Nest Box Kinney Swallow Nest Box This nest box should be at least 10″ long and at least 7″ wide with the backboard at least 6″ high and the front board 8 or 9″ high. Unused peregine nest at the Gulf Tower, Downtown Pittsburgh, March 2016 (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Gulf Tower) Peregrines require a high ledge with gravel or a similar substrate in which to sculpt a depression for their nest. For backyard boxes, supervise dogs during the kestrel breeding season and keep cats indoors always. Measure in from the front 6.25" for the front edge of the first strut - this will center the front strut at about 7". I used the MinWax Golden Pecan and the Man O' War varnish. We also put in a back door allowing the box to be easily cleaned or aired out. One reason to put the door on the short side (front/back) is so that you can line up boxes next to each other and access them easily. This is determined by the local food supply - the better the food supply, the smaller each territory will be. Using a construction grade hot epoxy glue would get around that, though, but I have not personally tried it. The perch will need to be just about 11" long, although you will likely need to rasp it slightly and sand the edges to get it to fit snugly into the box. Cover the screw heads with wood filler. Ventilation is critical with these designs. A "piano" hinge can be used on the chloroplast construction and liquid nail can seal the seams. I'm debating the width. If you have dogs loaded into a truck that are getting anxious to hunt, they can bounce all over. These can also be discarded or recycled instead of cleaned. On the underside of the platform, place joists designed for the mounting structure. A side door is the next modification we will try. It would just be easier to cut the rope handle than try to sew through that thick suede again. Building a red-tailed hawk's nest is a task that can be accomplished by amateurs, but correctly situating it is another story. Red-Tailed Hawk loading into a hawkbox video clip: 2.5 meg Top view of the left and right walls and the struts placed between them. Leave the box out in direct sun for several weeks to help eliminate the stain, varnish, and epoxy chemicals before adding a bird to it. In addition to reporting for a major newspaper chain, she has been published in "Horse News," "Suburban Classic," "Hoof Beats," "Equine Journal" and other publications. A door on the long side might reduce the structural stability, particularly for Chloroplast or other flexible materials. And painting the inside of the box black will help diminish the light and calm the bird. Empower Her. Chloroplast can be painted with Krylon fusion paint. Passing it into the box through the holes, then knotting the end worked well. Fray one end of the rope slightly. When you’re ready to start building, first get flat wood like plywood that’s around 2 inches thick from a construction supply store or scraps you have from a past project. Resist this as the bird cannot regain her footing if she gets unseated. Sheet metal is generally avoided by many as it heats up and traps the heat, although this might be desired in certain environments. The red-tailed hawk, Buteo jamaicensis, ranges throughout North and Central America. Many different door designs have been tried - swinging door, slide in door that drops from the top down (like a guillotine), side-to-side slide door, and more. American Kestrels (as with all falcons) do not build a nest other than to scrape together wood chips or gravel to use as a nest. A hawk's nesting platform should measure 2 feet square. With box cutters doors and ventilation can be cut in the sides. Semi-homemade hawk boxes can be made out of inverted Rubbermaid containers, waxed fiberboard drums, Sonotube concrete forms, dog carriers, and inverted garbage cans. A bird can easily fall off the perch, or step off, and get caught behind the perch or under it.