Sparrow Traps

[hopeathome]

What is the best Sparrow Trap I can buy online?
I have a awful time keeping them out of my Martin houses. I live in a small town.... Not in a rural setting a sparrow are everywhere!
I'm having to lower my houses everyday and pull out the nests they keep trying to make.
I know it's not the best thing but my husband usually shoots the sparrows with a pellet rifle. But he travels a lot, so I need something I can do myself when he's gone... Like a good sparrow trap.

Also, what it "Spook" Tape and is it effective?

I think I spotted my fist pair arrive this morning

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Hope

[Don Strickland]

I recommend you have Hubby give you a few quick lessons so you can shoot the pellet gun......
Don

[Louise Chambers]

Hope, what kind of martin house do you have? Some traps fit inside, so you can catch a pair when they are building nests.
There are traps that work with bait/food, and traps that are put in single boxes to work as cavity traps. Go to the PMCA Shop and click on traps - you can view different types there. http://purplemartin.org/shop/index.php? ... 71c602ff6b

My personal fave is a bait trap since it works year-round, whereas cavity traps work during the nesting season. And a pellet rifle with a scope is a big help too.

[dancingirl76]

I got a sparrow trap off of this site last year that fit into one of the house compartments; however, I was too scared to leave it while I was gone because I did catch a male PM and boy was he glad for me to let him go! I had some decent success with the trap getting the sparrows if I let them start building a nest, pull the nest, put in the trap, then push in some of the nesting material for camouflage- but I had to lower and raise the house a lot to take care of things. The house sparrows did start getting smart to it though. I also tried one of the big traps that you sit on the ground but all I ended up catching was one of our orioles! lol he was NOT happy!
My best defense ended up being our .22 rifle with a scope. We live in the country so I didn't have to worry about a stray shot- but not everyone has that luxury. My husband already had it and it is my favorite target shooting gun and after a little practice with something like that you are sure to be a crack shot. In fact I am a better shot than my husband. I took the screen out of the dining room window and once I would see a HS on the fence or feeder near the pole I would slowly crack the window enough to stick the barrel out plus I could brace myself against the frame for even more stable of a shot. I did so weel last summer as an "exterminator" that this whole winter I have only seen 1 female.
You can try a trap and my best luck was with a compartment trap but I still think shooting is the best. You just have to come up with what is the best way for you and the best set up. Another good way if you don't have a house window to shoot from is to sit in your car. This year I have a blind to sit in too.

[hopeathome]

Thanks Don, I have considered that! But I am a dreadful shot. He is a competition marksman. It a b=very tough shot to make. especially when you live in a small town. I'd most likely hit someones window.

[hopeathome]

Hi Lousie,
I have one Trio House and one more or less looking Heritage Farms House.
It's more of a hexagon shape and has starling proof holes.

Where do I place the the trap you recommended?

Thanks so much,
Hope

[Bulldog1]

Uncle Blaines Sparrow trap - Solved my sparrow problem

[Tony]

Also see the YouTube instruction in the stickies at the top of the forum by Bruntdog on how to build your own repeating bait trap. Great instructions and a very good year round trap

[Archer]

Uncle Blaines Sparrow trap, works year round. Catches many at a time. Once you have caught the first one, put some food and water in the cage and keep him alive. He will draw many other sparrows to the trap.

[Guest]

I have a sparrow problem as well... Last year was my first attempt with Purple Martins, in June a got 12 room S&K house with tri-tel pole and as soon as I put it up I had one male and two female Purple Martins, they started to build immediately (one above the other one). Half way through their building a male sparrow started to build a nest on the other side of the house. At that point I started to read about being a PM landlord on various websites/forums and decided to start taking out the nest daily while my trap that fits my house from PMCA arrives. The male sparrow would build a new nest within a few hours every morning. Finally the trap came in and it worked great I caught a pair, because by that time he already had a female. After that... four more sparrows showed up and started building, when I would trapping in one compartment they would build in the other, I would pull those nests and then the worst happen they moved to the other side and took over both of my Purple Martin nests. Both of my females left, one sooner than the other, but my male hang around for awhile, he would come in the mornings and try to attract other females the would fly by.
That's when I decided to get a Blain's repeating trap and build Brad Biddles trap myself, between those two I caught up to 12 sparrows every day and in total last fall I trapped 148 sparrows. You would think that put a dent in their presence in my neighborhood, not a chance... the moment I've put up my s&k housing this year, one male and two females showed up the following day and started building their nest. Since Martins are not back, I got two of them with mouse glue...
The one good thing this year is that they have not showed an interest in my deluxe gourd rack that I have purchased last year, but I don't know what will happen when PM arrive...
So what I'm trying to say here that if your are able get many different types of traps... I'm also not good shooter at the live targets, so far I was able to nip a starling, but I've yet to hit a sparrow...

[ThomasOutlaw]

HOSP are flocking to my PM house. I ordered one of the "Uncle Blane" repeating traps on Monday and it was waiting on my front porch when I got home from work Friday. They say the hardest part is catching the first one. Keeping my fingers crossed.

[NancyinEnidOK]

Hi, Hope! Since you have a Trio -- I was wondering if one of the compartments could be converted to a "Hotel California" by installing a Spar-O-Door? I've not used one of these yet, but understand that the entrance hole is too small for a Martin to enter, so as traps for housing go, that would be one that's safe to use this time of year. (I have two Universal traps for house compartments and traps for four of my gourds, but am not using them now for fear of trapping a Martin by accident.) I think you could use one compartment for trapping HOSP but the other compartments would remain available for Martins. You can order Spar-O-Doors from PMCA. I am counting on experienced forum members to chime in if for some reason this would not be advisable. Thank you!

[JohnT]

I have had an Uncle Blaine's for four days. Eleven caught so far. I'm temporarily out of sparrows, but I'm expecting reinforcements any day.

[Archer]

I have had an Uncle Blaine's for four days. Eleven caught so far. I'm temporarily out of sparrows, but I'm expecting reinforcements any day.

Good going John, you'll find that if you keep trapping year round it will make a big difference. The best time to lower the sparrow population is in fall when all the young gang up into a big group. They are not so smart when they are young and you can get many at that time.

[ThomasOutlaw]

It took a while to coax the HOSP into my repeating trap, which I received last Friday. I sprinkled seed in the trap and around the trap and all over the outside perch and bait tray shelf. They ate all the seed aound the outside and I had to repeat the process a few times. Today, I found the first 2 in trap this afternoon after lunch and by dark I had two more. I plan to attach two small cedar nest box on the back side of the trap, one on either side of the clean-out hole, to provide the bait birds some shelter and a place to hide, to extend the shelf life of the bait birds.

[Archer]

Something to think about, if you give them a place to hide, they won't be doing there jobs of attracting other sparrows. What they need is some food and water to keep them going. Glad to hear of your success Thomas Outlaw!
How are the martins doing?

[ThomasOutlaw]

Archer: You might be right about the nest box thing. As far as my Martins go, the closest thing I have to a colony is one Tree Swallow that I observed checking out one of my gourds a week ago today, and a neighbor claims to have seen a ASY Male PM trying to figure out how to get through a cresent opening on my house on Monday of this week. There is an established colony less than a mile away that has PMs since last week, so they are close by. It seems to me that the main group of ASYs are still not here yet, nor the SYs, so I'm still keeping my hopes up and tryig to rid the neighborhood of rif-raff in the mean time.

[Archer]

Outlaw, I'm in the same boat, second year of trying but it will be at least another month before the first scouts will be in the area. Speaking of getting rid of the neighbourhood riff raff, I got ridd of my bird feeder and it helps keep the riff raff away. Nothing to attract them. I also got rid of some old birdhouses that the starlings might be attracted to. Hopefully, this is our year, good luck.