Kathy -- when I went back out, I decided that BOTH nests look like they are primarily twigs, though there certainly are some more grass-like pieces as well as a few small seedheads (maybe dried sedum?) in the second one (it's also not as deep). I pulled out the one that was clearly all twigs (had a very deep "cup" in the middle but no eggs), but I left the other because I just wasn't sure. Here are the two pictures: first is the all-twig one that I removed today (how well do I need to clean out the box? I think there are a few twigs on the floor since I didn't have a brush with me). The second is the other box. Just a note: these two boxes are fairly close together because last year we had tree swallows and I had read that tree swallows and bluebirds will "share" space if there are two boxes. Swallows won't let another swallow pair nest nearby but will leave the bluebirds if they want the other house. I think what I read (on Audubon site or somewhere) was to put the two boxes about 10-15 feet apart. I know that's not what you do if you want actual bluebirds to use them both, but we were hoping to keep a pair of bluebirds in the one if the swallows returned this year (those swallows are GORGEOUS birds, too!)

They are no different in Europe than anywhere else. It is true in the animal world it is hard to find a species that's completely innocent. Bluebirds will also kill and take over a nest if they have too. Barn swallows can do the same. I can give you a link with a story about swallows sealing a nest that a sparrow took over, and they sealed it with a sparrow inside (but the link is not in English). Swifts in Europe often take over a nest by killing the birds with its claws. The american cowbird is an angel compared to the European cuckoo bird :) I could continue with these kind of stories forever. Any way, I don't have a problem with your or anybody else's advise, but you should list all the possible solutions, not just YOUR favorite.

Unless it's a big nest, or you see more than one nest in the box, I'd suspect plain old House Mouse rather than a Deermouse. Deermice are country mice, Housemice are urban/suburban. Deermice live in groups of up to 10, so where there is one nest, you will often find another. Cold weather means tiny little herds of deermice are trying to move in where it's warm, which is why I have two cats living in the kitchen/back porch. One is a great mouser, the other is a great goof off, but they keep my kitchen rodent free. Otherwise, if I didn't have the cats, I would use glue traps, but only because: (tender hearted soul that I am) 1) This is a farm, so I have plenty of open land to let them go. 2) I know how to get almost any animal off a glue trap without harming it. (other than an insect -sorry, but I've not had much luck saving spiders or crickets) The secret is cooking oil. Corn oil, cheap-o vegetable oil, if you're feeling really bad about making the vermin suffer, you could use extra virgin olive oil, but really, it doesn't matter. Just slide the glue trap and the struggling varmint onto a cookie sheet or sturdy piece of cardboard to support it while you carry it outside. (In our case, that would be outside and at least a 1/4 mile away from the house, but just outside works if you're in town) When you get to the release site, just set the cookie sheet/cardboard down, and pour corn oil over the rodent. Oil disolves the glue in less than a minute, and your greasy little varmint will have pulled itself off the trap and will be staggering away into the grass. The rat/mouse/chipmunk/baby squirrel will take care of cleaning itself, which is why you use edible oil. Lizards, frogs and toads don't clean themselves, but it won't hurt them either. If you catch a bird, you'll have to carefully wash the oil out of it's feathers with dish soap, like they do for seabirds caught in an oil slick. This is also what I'd suggest you do if you catch a litter of kittens. (which happened to one of my neighbors, who called me in a panic about it)

Hi juanital: great swallow picture! But, birdhouses should be mounted on a small diameter pole with a cone or wobbly hanging PVC baffle baffle for predator protection... a snake, raccoon or squirrel can easily climb up that post and reach in to eat the contents... its cheap to buy and install the PVC baffle. Since you provided a home for these birds, its cheap insurance to see their young lives continue outside the box. Here is a link that shows the baffle: Here is a link that might be useful: predator baffle