The Davis Nestbox Network provides nesting habitat for secondary cavity nesting birds, such as Western Bluebird, in the parks and open space areas of the City of Davis as well as environmental education and outreach opportunities for the community. This project was established in 2019 through a partnership between the UC Davis Museum of Wildlife & Fish Biology, the City of Davis, the Friends of North Davis Ponds, and the UC Davis student chapter of the Society for Conservation Biology.  The Covell Greenbelt/North Davis Ponds/Davis Uplands Habitat Area Trail was the first to be created within the Davis Nestbox Network. The trail contains 20 nest boxes. Fifteen hanging nest boxes were installed in the Covell Greenbelt and North Davis Ponds area in 2019 and 5 pole-mounted boxes were installed at the North Davis Uplands Habitat Area in 2020.  In the Davis Nestbox Network that began in 2019, 20 new nest boxes were deployed. Since 2019, the boxes have produced 50-60 nests wand upwards of 200 chicks have fledged. To learn more about our nestbox internships, click here.

All banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Laboratory.