This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s February, 2024 eNewsletter.
By B.J. Grassmann, a citizen conservationist and Habitat Committee Chair
Do you have a case of Cabin Fever yet? Are you itching to get out of the house and breathe some fresh air? Consider installing a couple wood duck boxes at one of your favorite duck spots this winter. With a little help from Mother Nature, you can get into your duck hole a lot easier on hard water. WWA sells wood duck houses on our website for just $45 – a cost far less expensive than others.
While I don’t consider myself an expert, I do have ten years of field work in building, installing and maintaining wood duck boxes. Here are a few ideas that have worked for me:
- It’s not critical, but I like to stain wood duck boxes a dark brown. This protects the wood, helping it to last longer and the box blends in better with its surroundings.
- Place your boxes where there’s Willow brush or other “woodie” spots; near trees. They should be no closer than 50 yards apart.
- I like to keep the boxes over or near water; I use an old Mora ice auger to cut through the ice for installation of the pole. Ten foot treated landscape timbers will work for posts. Plus, I add to the top of the treated post, a 3-4’ one inch gas pipe. You can buy scrap pieces at a local big box hardware store.
Since predators can easily climb the timber, I have used a squirrel guard made for bird feeders as a predator guard. It slips over the pipe before you attach the box to the pipe.- Alternatively, 1 ¼” 10-foot metal pipe works pretty well for a pole instead of a landscape timber, and then the predator guard is not necessary.
- I’ve read that having the box about six feet off the ground or over the water is a good height.
- Point the front of the box towards open water. It seems to help if the hen can fly right into and out of the box.
- Trim branches around the box so no predators can work from a nearby tree or brush onto the box.
- Gerbel bedding works really well for lining the bottom of the box, sometimes it has cedar chips included in it. Put 3-4” of bedding in the bottom of the box. One small bag should be enough for six to eight boxes.
That’s about all it takes! It’s up to the ducks once you have them up. The real fun starts next winter when you check the inside of the box. Besides wood ducks, many other critters will use the box in different ways. Annual cleaning is easy. You just throw out unhatched eggs, egg shell pieces and feathers, and put in new bedding if needed.
It’s also a great way to keep kids involved in waterfowling!
So, get that fresh air your mind and body has been craving! Put up a few wood duck boxes and you’ll be improving the odds that Woodies will be “dive bombing” into your decoys next fall!