Yes, it is all bark really. The only other bird I thought could be possible was a Carolina Wren but I don't think so. We moved the house today after much though. We were at a loss what to do. The house has broken wood on the bottom, don't know how this happened but it was leaning where it was attached to the pole. I'm afraid it would not have made it safely with the birds inside. So, we made the decision to move the house gently to an area where it will have support, about 10-12 feet directly behind the pole, and pray. We have not gone out there today hoping that with piece and quite momma will not mind the move and brave coming back. We had no clue what else to do and felt this was the safest thing to give them a chance. At first I thought it was kind of silly that this bird was bring mulch into the house until I checked again and noticed the 6 eggs. Hopefully I'll get some pictures.

i agree! if you saw one of the parents enter the nest box, you can be pretty sure they will take care of the babies now. good for you for helping them out!

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.

Lydia 1959...As far as it's known, from decades of research by the PMCA and other organizations, the Purple Martins in the eastern half of the U.S. nest only in man-made cavities, and near human activity. Since the times before Columbus they have "imprinted" on humans. The eastern Native Americans lured them to their villages and gardens by setting natural gourds on sticks and dead trees. They knew when the Purple Martins were near, the flying insects were kept at bay. There is a small scattering of PMs on the west coast, and they seem to be nesting in single family groups around piers. There was a lot of excitement when a colony was discovered nesting in drainage pipes under highway overpasses around the Sacramento area. Still, for the vase majority of the Purple Martins, and the entire eastern population, it's man made housing. You can see the problem since fewer and fewer people are offering, and safely managing, housing for them. The PMs, along with our native blue birds, started declining in the 1950s and were fast approaching endangered status. The main causes were lack of housing being offered to them, loss of wooden fence posts in the case of the blue birds, and the explosion of the imported, non-native English House Sparrow that will kill/destroy any cavity nester, its eggs and its chicks, that it can find...PMs, bluebirds, chickadees, woodpeckers, nuthatches, etc. all fall prey to these non-natives. So, loss of habitat, explosive numbers of non-native competitors, and a lack of well-managed housing not being offered is the main culprits of the decline of our native cavity nesters. I wish you could come visit. I sit under the feeder tree each morning with my tea and listen to the beautiful chatter, chortles, and songs of the PMs. They're here for such a short time, but I try to enjoy them enough to last the rest of the year. They travel to and from southern Brazil each year to raise their families. They come back to the same colony each year. They are magical!