A little help with the plug and string method,please

[John T]

My numbers are still increasing. Through May 28 I have 17 pair, 44 eggs and 21 babies. My problem is my first babies are 22 days old and I have read about the string and plug method of lowering racks for nest checks. Last year I had 2 birds fly prematurely while lowering the racks. Luckily they were able to get back in their gourd but i'm very nervous about lowering the rack. Since you have to lower the rack to plug it, what other option is there? (p.s.- I'm not good on ladders but I do have a front end loader.)

[ToyinPA]

It's a hard call. Lower to check younger chicks or don't lower. I always tap the pole. This lets them know the house is coming down. If any older chicks are peeking out they usually scamper back inside. However it doesn't always work & then you're chasing chicks allover the neighborhood. Even older chicks may need attention from....blowfly larva, dehydration, etc.

I feel it's a 2 person job. One with the rag or foam noodle ready to shove in the hole & one cranking the house/gourds down. I also use clamps & a piece of cardboard with about 1 inch bent over on the end. Cardboard is just a little smaller than the room. I open the door just far enough to slide it in & then clamp it in place. If you're doing a side with 3 rooms & nests I block off all 3 rooms with cardboard. Keeps the chicks from escaping while checking the rest of the rooms.

For a rack with a bunch of gourds...sorry never used them....have no idea....but hope someone that does use gourds replies for you.

Toy in PA

[Curtis Reil]

I don't have gourds myself either but if your gourds are fixed vs suspended and swaying, just use a paint roller with a long handle. Two person job but you can block the entrance you desire and the roller will just come down with the house or rack. It works slick if you can make it fly. Then plug the hole as soon as it's down with a rag or foam on a string. Raise rack and pull the plug after a few minutes. Save dealing with ladders and the tractor.

[John T]

That is an idea, Curtis-Thanks. I've got a Gemini(24 gourds) and an ss24(24 gourds) so I can see this will be an ongoing problem. Maybe someone with a Gemini can suggest something.

[Louise Chambers]

My husband used a telescoping lightweight pole to make a tool, we can plug selected gourds while the rack is still up, then lower for nest checks, replacing with a plug & string, for removing plugs after nest check is complete. Works beautifully for nests with older nestlings - 24 days or older. I don't think 22 day olds are going to bail on you. Plug their gourds as soon as you or a helper can reach them, and don't do more than take a quick look inside. Don't stick your hand inside or touch the nestlings from about 22 days on.

[John T]

Thanks, Louise-Time to start another project. Last year when I had 2 birds bail, I did a nest check and had one bird in the gourd. I tried to locate the 2 birds but couldn't. When I went back inside (sick to my stomach) a coopers dropped in to chase the 2 birds. I just knew I had caused their demise but the next morning they were all back in their gourd. What a relief, all 3 birds fledged.

[John Barrow]

I think one of the keys of doing nest checks with older nestlings on a gourd rack is to work very quietly, and to lower the system slowly and smoothly to minimize any jerking motion in the rack. As stated checks are best done by two people; one to gently lower the system, the other to insert plugs as they become reachable. We also study the system before beginning to locate gourds that need plugging and decide which person will plug what gourds as quickly and efficiently as possible.

As Louise stated, I have designed a system to plug gourds from ground level. It is a telescoping "pool" pole to which I have attached a strip of 3/4 inch aluminum flat bar about 10 inches long, bent to 90 degrees about two inches from one end and attached with a radiator clamp to the top of the pole (attach 2-3 inches below the top so that the plug will push against the pole when inserted into a gourd entrance). That leaves about 8 inches extending outward from the top of the pole.
Plugs are made from pieces of small diameter pipe insulation and are about ten inches long. They are compressed and tapered on the end going into the gourd with super glue and duct tape. Plugs are mounted on the aluminum flat bar, the pole extended and the plug pushed in to the gourd entrance 4 or 5 inches (until snug) and the flat bar is pulled away from the plug, leaving it inserted in the cavity. That plug is replaced with a string bearing plug (also a piece of pipe insulation) during the nest check and left in the cavity until the system is raised and the nestlings have had time to settle.

[Jacquie100]

John do you have a picture you could post? Hoping my husband could make us one ...

[John Barrow]

Jacquie,
I am away from the house right now and do not have access to photos. I believe Louise has photos, and if she sees this post she might be able to post those. In a previous post in May, 2014, Louise posted,

"In the spring Update, which most members have received by now, there's a how-to article on making a nest check pole - this lets you place the plugs in gourds or rooms with older nestlings before you lower the system. Once it's lowered, replace the plugs with cups or plugs with strings, so you can remove when system is raised again."

That article, if you have access to the Spring, 2014, Update, has photos of the pole I designed, and have used to block older nestlings in a cavity, and I have also trapped starlings in gourds with the method.

There is good information about checking nests in this link to another 2014 post by Louise:
http://purplemartin.org/forum/viewtopic ... +plug+pole

[Tim Mangan-Kansas]

In addition to plugging holes at my own site, I also find the need to plug holes at various landlord sites while conduction banding sessions. If nestlings are over 24 or 25 doa, I recommend plugging the hole. Both John and Louise make good points. It is best to have at least one helper when plugging entrances and try to do it as quietly as possible. You will want to know which holes need plugged ahead of time and have your plugging device in hand and ready so you don't waste any time.

When I first started plugging entrances, I used a string. However, I found the string would get blown by the wind and could get caught on porches, vents and other areas not allowing the string to be pulled on without possibly breaking. I now use, and have for several years, a lightweight rope with insulation pipe foam tied to it about every 3' or 4'. I only insert the end of the form about 1/2" to 3/4" into the opening. This is far enough and makes it easier to remove them. Once I have replaced the nestlings to the nest and raised the housing, I wait about five minutes and then pull on the rope which removes the plugs. Here is a picture showing holes being plugged.

[cary-nw-fla]

Great minds think alike... ... I use similar method described by Louise & John. Took foam pool noodle from Dollar Tree, cut it in lengths then cut it in half the long way, attached loop of wire to one end secured with duct tape. After nest check use the extension pole to remove the plugs. Got really tired of chasing those string ends.