At the end of May I went on holiday leaving a pair of great Tits happily building a nest in a nest box in our garden. When we got back a week later there was no sign of them. When I investigated there appeared to be snail trarils on the front of the next box. There was no sign of any snail in the box only one empty nest.
Is this a common occurence and how can I prevent it happening in the future? Any ideas?
Thanks
Hi puffinnuffin (great name btw) - not sure of the answer to this, except to say that snails seem to get everywhere - and if you have snails, maybe you also have snail-eating wildlife around too :-)
Make the boy interested in natural history if you can; it is better than games [Robert Falcon Scott]
Hi Puffinnuffin,
I can't answer your question either, but just wanted to welcome you to the forum.
Cheers, Linda.
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Hi
Thanks for the welcome
Thanks for your reply. Snails DO get everywhere but I seem to have a lack of things that find them tasty.
I have seen this before, it looked like the snails had gone over the box but not inside, i had a look around but could see no immediate sign of the culprit. However, i have subsequently found snails on the wall even higher than the box which was mounted at just over two metres. I'm guessing the snail was looking for a safe hiding place, what drives them to climb walls is a bit of a puzzle to me, anyone got any theories on that?
Thankfully i do not think the snails behaviour would have put the nesting birds off in any way so i wouldn't worry about trying to stop it. The Homes for Wildlife pages have got some good tips on how to make your garden attractive to a variety of creatures including those that eat snails like the hedgehog, blackbird and song thrush, have a look at the link here.
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Hi puffinnuffin
Welcome to the forum. Enjoy yourself here
I am afraid the theory of the snails in the bird box has flunixed me too. I am sure that a Blackbird/Thrush would find them one of the tastiest snacks going. So if you have Blackbirds they will love them, along with a Hedgehog or two.
Yes, snails do get in some strange places. I have a large Wheely Bin full of bird food and feeders. I always keep the lid down as the bin is kept outside in all weathers. Each day, I open the lid and I find lots of snails of all sizes attached onto my bird feeder containers in the bin.
What puzzles me is that the snail still manages to get into the wheely bin, under the lid, shell and all. They have to crawl through a small space to to do - so another puzzle to me??
Regards
Kathy and Dave
Hi to you both thanks for the welcome.
Your are definitely right about snails getting everywhere you find them in the strangest places.
I have blackbirds in the garden but need more to keep the snails down! I have never seen a hedgehog in the garden but I know there are some in the area. I just need them to come my way.
Linda
Many thanks for your reply. The nest box is about 3 metres up a tree. It is amazing how snails get everywhere. If you don't think the snails put off the great tits, what do you think might have caused them to abandon the nest .
I'll certainly look at the Homes for Wildlife pages it may proove very useful
Regards Linda
Let us know how you get on!
Hi again
Will let you know how things go
linda
Ditto as been mentioned by other members about up to date news on the goings on in your garden area {thumbs up}
Welcome to the forum, afraid I can't answer your question.
Snails do seem to get everywhere. In my garden they love my watering can. When there is no water coming out of it if I look down the narrow part of the spout I spy tentacles waving at me! The widlife must enjoy them as I find empty shells in the garden.
Lyndyloo
puffinnuffin Hi Many thanks for your reply. The nest box is about 3 metres up a tree. It is amazing how snails get everywhere. If you don't think the snails put off the great tits, what do you think might have caused them to abandon the nest . I'll certainly look at the Homes for Wildlife pages it may proove very useful Regards Linda
No worries!
There are a whole range of things that can put birds off nesting. Poor weather, lack of food, predators, disturbance, the loss of a mate, competition from other birds can all play a part. Hopefully they will return and nest successfully in the years to come, keep a look out over winter for birds using the box as a roost as well.