HOUSE SPARROWS

Other suggestions on feeding birds in your yard to help reduce your number of sparrows include:

	Do not feed bread crumbs or other bakery products. These are favorites of sparrows and starlings.
	Feed primarily SUNFLOWER seeds and SAFFLOWER seeds. These are generally preferred by most songbirds while being less preferred by the house sparrow.
	Feed SUNFLOWER HEARTS and NIGER in tube feeders and cut the perches down to about 1/4 inch so that the house sparrow can't hang on to them.

Housing -- Sparrows are opportunists that will look for any man-made nook or cranny in which to build their nests. By being aware of this fact, you can take steps to eliminate potential nesting sites.

An unattended Purple Martin house is a sparrow disaster waiting to happen because Martin houses are a favorite nesting site of the house sparrow. On your next drive around town or out in the country, pay attention to the number of run down Martin houses that are filled with sparrow nests. (It's easy to spot the messy sparrow nest sticking out of the house openings). People don't realize the harm they are doing to songbirds in their area by neglecting their Martin houses. Just like unmonitored bluebird boxes, neglected Martin houses, or any unchecked birdhouse in general, should be taken down. Remember, there is an over abundance of house sparrows. Providing nesting sites for house sparrows is only decreasing opportunities for our native songbirds.

Other sparrow nesting sites to watch for in and around your yard or property are:

	Clothes line poles with the end caps off are often used by sparrows. A plug in the hold will eliminate this.
	Any type of nook or cranny in any building should be eliminated whenever possible.
	Overhangs on a roof without a soffit are often used.

Obviously, no matter how valiant your efforts, you will never be able to stop all of the house sparrows in your area from nesting. But you can take some simple and practical steps to reduce the number of sparrows fledged in your area.

Shelter -- Sparrows tend to flock together throughout most of the season, but even more so in the winter. They generally prefer a large brush pile, pine, spruce or cedar trees for shelter. Of course, you wouldn't, couldn't or shouldn't eliminate this habitat because of the desirability to both you and to other birds and wildlife.  If possible, house sparrows using the brush or trees for shelter should be driven away after nightfall which will make them more subject to predation. Also, driving sparrows from their sheltered areas before a blizzard or thunderstorm will subject them to falling prey to hazardous weather conditions. If this sounds cruel, remember that this is a passive control measure which leaves their survival up to them and nature, as opposed to trapping once their numbers are too large to "scare off."

In addition to natural shelter, house sparrows are quick to use man made shelters such as open buildings or garages with openings. To deter sparrows, keep these areas closed whenever possible.

SPARROW CONTROL ON A BLUEBIRD TRAIL

Trapping and killing House Sparrows is not something every bluebirder has to agree with or ever has to practice, so don't feel you're being negligent if you decide trapping is not right for you. Hopefully, if you follow the guidelines relating to "passive" control, your sparrow problems will be minimal and you will know the joy of having bluebirds successfully nest and fledge from your trail. But if you are unfortunate enough to live in an area where sparrows are a major problem, and you long to see bluebirds nesting outside your kitchen window, trapping and killing House Sparrows will probably be necessary. I myself didn't start trapping House Sparrows on a whim. I started by reading everything I could find regarding the issue of sparrow control and I'd like to share what some of the most experienced and respected bluebirders from across the country have to say about house sparrows.  These authors are all veteran bluebirders who have, on more than one occasion, opened their boxes expecting see find a mother bluebird with her nestlings but instead find a box of mutilated birds -- victims of a House Sparrow.

	Bluebirds - How to Book, Fred Comstock: "The only good house sparrow is a dead sparrow." Mr. Comstock suggests trapping and shooting.
	Enjoying Bluebirds More, by Julie Zickefoose: "Trap the adult sparrow if you can. ...Unprotected by law, house sparrows may be destroyed or relocated miles away."
	Bluebirds, How to Attract & Raise Bluebirds, Tina & Curtis Dew:   "Both sparrow nests and eggs, or young, should be destroyed in every case that they are found. ... Sometimes the sparrow is so persistent that trapping is the only way to eliminate them."
	Bluebird Trails, A Guide to Success, Dorene Scriven: "Eradication is the only solution that works! And constant eradication may be necessary over several years before all sparrow threats are taken care of. It is essential to trap and destroy the male house sparrow, even though it is far easier to catch the female." And "Trapping should continue all year, not just on the bluebird trail."
	Bluebirds Forever, Connie Toops: "Simply releasing house sparrows somewhere else may result in their invasion of other bluebird habitat. The quickest way to dispatch house sparrows is to wring their necks."
	Bring Back the Bluebird, Andrew Troyer: "They are as undesirable as a mouse in your house. When trapped do not take them miles down the road to be released. This is no different than throwing your garbage over the fence onto your neighbor's property. A very humane way to eliminate them is to put them into a plastic bag and hold it to a car exhaust."

As you can see, the consensus about the house sparrow is that it is a very undesirable, non-native bird that should not be allowed to invade the nesting habitat of our native bluebird.

Trapping in a Bluebird Box -- When trapping House Sparrows, remember that it is the male that must be caught, even though the female is easier to catch. As I mentioned before, the male's bond with a box is stronger than the bond with his mate. If only the female is caught, the male will quickly find another mate and your problems will start all over again. I also want to point out that House Sparrows are the only sparrow that use boxes for nesting, so when trapping sparrows in a bluebird box, you can be sure you have caught the notorious non-native English House Sparrow.

There are many good traps available for trapping House Sparrows in various styles of bluebird boxes. The two that I have used and have had success with are the Peterson trap (which only works on the Peterson box) and the Gilbertson trap (which can be used on any style of bluebird box). The Peterson trap can be purchased through Ahlgren Construction, 12989 Otchipwe Ave. North, Stillwater, MN 55082, for $5.50 per trap plus $3.00 shipping & handling for the first trap and $1.00 for each additional trap. The Gilbertson trap can be purchased directly from Steve Gilbertson, 35900 Dove Street, Aitkin, MN 56431 (218-927-1953.) (Steve Gilbertson's address has been corrected in this document as of 2/14/02) for $6.00 per trap, which includes all postage and handling fees.   (note: these prices change occasionally so check with the Ahlgren Construction and Steve Gilbertson for latest prices.)

Curt Sommer of New London, Wisconsin suggests catching the female sparrow at night when she is sitting on the nest. Place a cylinder (a can with two open ends) with a small plastic bag attached to one end over the entrance hole. Vigorously shake the box until the female flies through the can and into the plastic bag. It might take some prodding with a stick or wire to get her off the nest. A trap like one of those I just mentioned can then be set to catch the male who will return to the box in the morning.

Keith Radel of Faribault, Minnesota suggests trapping sparrows between 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon. He says this is the time of day the male is most likely to be sitting on the nest to give the female a break.

Do not ever set a trap unless you're sure a sparrow has laid claim to that box.  Never leave a trap set on a box for over two hours without checking the box. A bluebird or one of many native cavity-nesting songbirds could stop to check out the box, find itself trapped, and perish during that time period from lack of food and water.

When removing trapped House Sparrows from the box, place a clear garbage bag over the entire box and remove the trap with the bag over the box. The sparrow will fly into the bag and can easily be caught. It is very difficult to reach into the box and grab the House Sparrow. Their reflexes are so fast that they will slip out of the first small opening they see.

Some days seem better than others for trapping sparrows -- Who knows whether it is weather related, the timing of the birds' occupancy of the box, or just the variance in personalities and intelligence of the bird that determines whether they will enter a box with a trap on it. (Hint: Always leave a little bit of the sparrow's nest in the bottom of the box, but just enough so that it doesn't interfere with the workings of the trap.)

Pairing of boxes has advantages when trapping sparrows and can possible save the lives of your nesting bluebirds. Steve Gilbertson of Andover, Minnesota recommends pairing a PVC box with a Peterson or other wooden box. The sparrow will almost 100% of the time choose the wooden box which will leave the PVC box available for bluebirds. The House Sparrow can then be trapped in the wooden box.

Bob Orthwein of Columbus Ohio has great success with his triple box system (See Volume 2 No. 4 and Volume 4 No. 1 of the Bluebirds Across Nebraska Newsletter for more on his system.) Bob has one box for a bluebird, one for a tree swallow, and one to trap sparrows in. This triple box system is only recommended when you have tree swallows on your trail.

The underlying question on everyone's mind is what to do with the captured sparrow. Some people recommend taking the sparrow a distance away and releasing it. I do not like to recommend this because all you are doing is passing your problem on to someone else. Why simply relocate the nuisance bird to another area when you have the opportunity to eliminate a bird that is detrimental in so many ways.

Although unpleasant, there are ways to destroy House Sparrows that are more humane than others. Some of the humane ways I have heard of for destroying sparrows are: breaking the neck; suffocation by pressing in on the lungs; drowning in a burlap bag; asphyxiation by placing the House Sparrows in a bag which you then place over the muffler of your vehicle; or throwing the bird to the ground with enough force to kill them instantly. Yes, this may sound unpleasant, but the House Sparrows you trap and destroy can actually benefit some of our native birds -- injured raptors. The Raptor Recovery Center, 27320 Adams Street, Elmwood, Nebraska, 68349 uses donated dead sparrows to feed their injured raptors. And, as unpleasant as this may sound, the dead birds can be stored in ziplock bags in your freezer until you have enough to take to the Raptor Recovery Center.

Ground Trapping -- Ground trapping is a very effective method for large scale control of sparrows. There are two basic ground traps available: the "Have-A- Hart" and the "Trio". The Have-A-Hart trap in recommended over the Trio trap mainly because it is "repeatable", while the Trio trap has to be reset each time a sparrow is trapped.

*Al Weikert, 303 East 5th Street, Villisca, Iowa 50864 (712-816-2420) makes an excellent Have-A-Hart trap and sells it for a reasonable price. His traps are available for $25.00 plus $6.50 for shipping and handling.

If you decide to try a ground trap, here are some suggestions that I hope will make your efforts easier and more fruitful: Fall and winter are the best times of the year for ground trapping. The House Sparrow tends to spread out more in the spring and summer, having claimed their nesting sites, and flock together more in the fall and winter.

The best bait for the trap is millet, cracked corn, and/or white bread. A small mirror placed in the bait compartment of the trap helps to lure the sparrow in.  It is very helpful to have a House Sparrow in the holding compartment of the trap as it helps to draw other House Sparrows to the trap. I personally have had very little luck drawing House Sparrows to the trap unless there are decoy birds in the holding compartment, so I often trap House Sparrows in my bluebird boxes and then place them in the ground trap. The more birds you have in your holding compartment, the better luck you'll have drawing sparrows into the trap.

Be sure to keep food and water in your holding compartment and place a cover over part of that compartment to help the birds escape from the elements. Some of the birds will die in the trap during the first or second day of captivity, but the rest who accept the food and water will live for months.

IMPORTANT: When using a ground trap, it must be checked on a daily basis.  House Sparrows are not the only birds drawn to the trap. Native sparrows and other songbirds may enter the trap and should be released immediately! Be very careful when identifying House Sparrows as they have many similarities to our native sparrows. The male House Sparrow will be easy to identify (black bill and bib with white cheeks), but study the markings of a female House Sparrow carefully. Unless you are experienced at bird identification, a bird identification book is a necessity.

Thanks to: How to Control House Sparrows, by Don Grussing; and Bluebird Trails, A Guide to Success, by Dorene Scriven, two very helpful sources of my information.

04/10/05