Jump to content

Bird house caches?


tomthemagicman

Recommended Posts

I've been itching to make one of these for a long time but I have a question. How do you guys attach them to the trees? Is it against the guidelines to put a nail in a tree? More importantly can I pound a nail into the tree without hurting it?

 

edit: I just found out that putting a nail in a tree won't hurt it much at all as long as the tree isn't "young and small or have signs of existing decay" but I'd still like to know if anyone has had trouble with local geocachers criticizing their cache because of a nail in a tree or it Groundspeak has a rule against it.

 

Thank you :D

Edited by tomthemagicman
Link to comment

I have found a couple. None were hanging on a nail. The one I remember most was on its own post stuck on the ground.

 

It's really not about following the guidelines, it's more like will someone report you. I am all about following guidelines but the fact is that many caches out there don't. I have seen my fair share and I don't even have that many finds.

 

No one in my area really says anything. I used to but it just created angst locally so I try to just keep quiet unless it could really cause future problems with land managers.

Link to comment

I've seen birdhouse caches hanging from ropes/chains, just like real birdhouses.

 

I think the key details for a birdhouse cache are (1) preventing birds from actually using it (so cachers won't disturb nesting birds in the birdhouse cache), and (2) making it obvious which birdhouse is the cache (so cachers won't disturb nesting birds in nearby real birdhouses).

Link to comment

Attach a cord to the top and just loop it over a branch stub on the main trunk about 4 or 5 feet off the ground.

 

Here's a nicely done one I found a few months ago. It was hung from a branch. Although it was mounted lower than I would have hung it, it was good craftsmanship. You remove the dowels at the bottom and the 4x4 tupperware and a bottom panel drop out. Perfect for high-muggle areas. Some local teacher had her 3rd grade class make it, and then go out and hide it :D

 

af_bh.jpg

 

I've also made a couple of smaller birdhouse caches, of which one is in the wild now. It's also hung from a branch stub.

Link to comment

Hello to all,

 

I found a bird-house cache yesterday........

 

But - because I am older than Methuselah, weigh more than your average SUV, and am not 9 meters tall.............

 

I had to gaze wistfully upon this unreachable cache, heave a sigh of frustration and leave it for the more agile of the caching community.

 

Still all part of the fun....

 

Captain Spherical

Link to comment

Using a single nail or screw may not damage a mature tree and is a generally accepted practise for fixing nestboxes when placing them for birds to use

 

The UK's Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) guidance improves this with "It is better to attach it either with a nylon bolt or with wire around the trunk or branch."

Edited by SaltercreaseRangers
Link to comment

I've found maybe 50 "fake birdhouse" caches. One common theme is that a lot of them seem to be hidden in nature preserves with permission from the land manager. Maybe they like the idea of something 'hidden in plain sight' better than having people rooting around in stumps and turning over rocks.

 

Anyways, here is an idea I had (and may use someday): To get permission to place a cache in your favorite local bird watching park, offer to construct three or four real birdhouses at places of their choosing, using materials and labor donated by you. Then there would be an extra birdhouse 100 feet further away, that was really a geocache. How could a land manager say no to that offer?

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...