1. 

   2010 photo contest winner

2. 

   Nest Box

3. 

   Project Nest Box Launch

4. 

   Eastern Bluebird eggs

5. 

   Black Capped Chickadee Eggs

6. 

   Eastern Bluebird

7. 

   Black Capped Chickadee

8. 

   Tree Swallow eggs

9. 

   House Sparrow

Easy-to-Follow Assembly Instructions

Available online for download are detailed assembly instructions produced by CleanRiver™’s Graphics and Design Department. The step-by-step instructions include color photographs of the various components to aid the students with the assembly. 

Monitoring the Nest Boxes

The essential element of Project Nest Box is the actual monitoring of the nest boxes. Bi-weekly, from April through July, the students monitor each nest box by simply unlocking the box and opening the hinged door. The students have a quick peek inside to observe the activity and changes that have occurred within the boxes from one visit to the next. 

Using specific forms produced by Bird Studies Canada, the students collect scientific data. The collected data is then submitted online to Bird Studies Canada’s national nest watch program, Project NestWatch. Data is then shared and combined with provincial nest records schemes providing a collective picture of the health of bird populations across Canada. As birds are a bio-indicator of environmental health, these records provide vital data for scientific study. 

Graphics Aid in Accurate Species Identification

To aid the students with correct species identification and therefore ensuring accurate statistics, CleanRiver™ has designed a full-color poster which is donated to each participating school for use in the classroom. The poster depicts the species of birds likely to nest in the boxes and illustrates the unique differences between the adults, nests, and eggs of each species.

Project Nest Box Supports Multiple Curriculum Guidelines

Project Nest Box supports many curriculum guidelines in the areas of science (biology, ecosystems), math (probability, graphing), geography (plotting accurate nest box locations, mapping results), language arts (learning new terminology, reading and writing about birds), to name but a few. 

With this in mind, CleanRiver™ has also produced the ‘Project Nest Box – School Nest Watch Program Guide’. This guide contains all of the instructions necessary to aid the teachers with site selection for the boxes, proper monitoring information, code of conduct while nest monitoring, details regarding the species likely to nest in the boxes, the history of Project Nest Box, as well as useful links and information to further their education program. The guides are available for both Eastern and Western areas and are available in both English and French.  

Pioneered by David Tomlinson of the Aurora Environmental Advisory Committee’s Naturalization and Wildlife Working Group, CleanRiver™ is proud to partner with David and his group of dedicated volunteers; Bird Studies Canada; and the Royal Ontario Museum’s Ontario Nest Records Scheme, to bring this very worthwhile and educational program to schools across Canada and beyond. 

For more information on Project Nest Box - School Nest Watch Program, please call Sheri Rilett (905) 717-4982 (toll-free 888-646-4246) or email sheri.rilett@cleanriver.com.