Communal roosting

[~Ray~Gingerich]

Have been thinking about communal roosting habits of martins during cold periods, often packed into a gourd or small nesting chamber and the hazards of a blocked entrance So I had a thought and wondering if this would work? Make a bird house, just the outer shell with no interior divisions, a floor area sized to dimentions of an electrical heating pad, maybe 18"x18" and something for a slight seperation between the heating pad and the birds. The house would have 3 or 4 entrances. During cold periods set the heating pad on a low or medium setting. This would provide more space and escape if an entrance becomes blocked??

[Chris Brown]

If you are going to try it I would suggest a heating mat for germinating seeds. They are water proof so there for fairly safe. When I use mine for seed germination I use a thermometer and place the seed trays on top of layers of card board until I get the desired temperature. If you built a dedicated house for this possibly under a bed and breakfast you could heat only one side and the birds could move away from the heat mat if it got too hot. The same as baby chickens do from a heat light.