Repeating HOSP trap placement?

[Mitch Booth]

Hello everyone,

It's been a few years since I've used this repeating house sparrow trap. If I'm recalling there were some Do's and Don'ts as far as placement of the repeating house sparrow trap. If I'm remembering correctly that the manufacture mentioned to make sure the trap was elevated and not sitting on the ground. I've tried both with no success either way.

If anyone has any input I'd be happy to hear.

Thanks,

Mitch

P.S. Oh - I have daily visitors (every morning) and one persistent SY male for a couple of weeks but no nesters so it is starting to appear that I'm going to have to wait until next year again. Maybe I need to give him a lesson in picking up chicks!!! GRRRR Oh well the season has been a relative success with all the activity of them going in and out of gourds and the T-14 which has never happened at my previous site that didn't have the proper tree clearance.

[Don & Danielle]

Mitch

I believe you are correct about the placement. The instructions say the trap works better if up off the ground, like on a picnic table. I put mine on a piece of plywood sitting on a large empty flower pot nearby the location of the nest. The instructions mention that there should be a 'bottom' underneath the trap - that's why I use the plywood rather than put the trap directly on the close pot where there would be nothing under the trap. I have had some good luck with my trap at times and other times the HOSP would not go in - at least for quite some time.

The instructions say feathers work well as bait during their nesting cycle. Glue a couple of white puffy feathers to a small piece of wood to keep them from blowing away and use that as bait. Worked well for me one time.

[Craig Haddox]

I also put my trap on plywood and sit it on the ground in front of the houses. I had a male in it when I went to work and when I got home there were 6 other sparrows in it.

[bacato]

I like to tear the sparrow nest out of the martin house, place a small portion of it in the repeating trap (especially the soft feather section). Works better than any type of food, etc.

[avesrun]

Mitch: I've been having great success of late with my repeating trap. I went for months catching every species EXCEPT hosp. Mine I have screwed to section of pallet that I cut to the size of the trap. I have mine placed on the ground near my bird feeding station. What finally helped me to get my money's worth from the trap was placing live hosp in the trap that I tunnel trapped in my t-14. I have caught 6 hosp this week. I keep the trap in my garage at night with a towel over it so the raccoons or the likes won't tear apart the trap trying to get at the live sparrows I keep in the trap. The only bad part about placing the trap near feeders is that you will catch many natives (in my area i catch cowbirds, other sparrow species, and even mourning doves and blue jays get stuck on the elevator goimg down; so the trap must be monitored often. I used mixed bird seed for bait.