Many of the birds you mention aren't cavity nesters, so a nest box wouldn't matter. Probably chickadees are the most likely. If you put up a box for chickadees, of course make sure it's protected from predators with a baffle on the post or pole, especially since you mention cats and racoons. The hole size is 1 1/8", small enough that house sparrows and starlings won't be able to enter. One thing I read is that chickadees might prefer a larger hole to start with, like 1 1/4", and then once they have established use of the box, you can put a 1 1/8" hole reducer on. Much depends on the habitat in your yard and in the surrounding area. Chickadees seem to like the nest box to be on the edge of a woody or shrubby area. A chickadee box might also attract house wrens, so I guess it depends on whether you want to potentially host them or not. You don't mention what state you live in, so I don't know if you have house wrens. Other suggestions for nest boxes could be wood ducks (since you live near water), or even screech owls, which could use the same box as wood ducks. Or, you could try putting up an Owl Shack in the fall. I've got two up, no luck so far with screech owls, but the woodpeckers sure like to drum on that nice resonant box! If you have many dogs and cats running around your neighborhood, then you might not get anything at all. If that is the case, then you might not want to try and attract wood ducks, because they have to jump out of the box to make their way to the water, and would be easy targets for cats.

Thanks Lisa, that is what I was thinking too but I wanted to make sure. I will just keep the wrens busy pulling sticks. LOL! I was thinking of taking the hole reducer off that box too since I know the chickadees won't be back this year. Maybe then I could put it back up in Fall when nesting is done. There is a male HOSP hanging around lately too but like you said the TRES don't leave their nests unattended so I am hoping they will be ok. We have three boxes with eggs now. The HOSP keeps going into the empty box however seems to not have any female takers as of yet. Of course this is the only box I cannot put a trap inside, found out this year as it is top opening and the sides that come down into the box makes it a bit too narrow for the trap. I keep hoping I can get him at the feeder with the BB gun but so far no go. I may have dh put a house on a movable metal fencepost just to try to get rid of that little bugger. I had one other permanent trap box but a Robin built a nest near it and won't let any bird near that nestbox. Donna

As lisa likes to say....I don't think any bird police are going to be coming by your place if you remove that egg and nest. That is what I would do...but that is up to you. If you let them nest then there will be approx 7 more wrens to deal with next year....

Hi Michelle, I responded on the other thread that you posted on. If the wrens have already found the nestbox it may be too late to do anything about it this year. You need to make a wren guard and use it before the wrens find the opening to your bluebird nestbox. Go to www.sialis.org to learn how to make and use a wren guard. For this year I'm afraid I would tell you to give up and either take down the nestboxes or open the doors so that they can't be used. I'm sorry you are having a problem but you can try again next year.