When we return the favor

[gooser]

I just got back in from building and setting up wood duck  boxes and building small hills and otherwise good places for ducks to nest. The hills will also support geese and other waterfowl areas to nest.
 I find it exciting to help the waterfowl at this time of year, as to see what becomes of our efforts.As I see it,we enjoy their participation in the fall.........., nows time they enjoy ours...

 How many people here do the same?
 Just wondered. And also if you have ideas for nesting areas.
gooser.

[Graybeard]

How about some info on doing this. I've been wanting to set a couple of wood duck boxes at my pond but can't find any to buy that are even remotely affordable. I'm not familiar with the small hills for geese either.

A pair of Canada geese nested at the pond this year as they did last. Both years a few days after the young hatched they just all disappeared over night. One afternoon they were there when I went down to feed the fish and the next morning there was no sign of them. No evidence of foul play just no geese both years. I noticed a pair of mallards fly in this morning about 6:00 AM. Mallards used to nest there when the area was a swamp before I had the pond dug.

[Specklebelly]

I agree with this idea but have not been too successful. 

We put out four wood duck houses several years ago and the only thing they have "nested" are wasps.  I did not check on them this year, however I just may do that now that you reminded me of them.

I think you guys up north have a better chance of being successful as basically everything here is gone except for the BW teal and resident geese.

[gooser]

This is our 12th year we,(my hunting partner) have been doing this.What we have found is to keep the box height at 6 to 9 feet high over the water.We make our boxes 8" deep,11" high,10" wide. Use an oval shaped entrance hole of 3"x4". Make sure to put some drain holes in the bottom,we make 4.
 Use metal around a   wooden pole at the top,or just use a metal pole. We put these up on my partners property,which is agricultural and marsh land. Remember to have an access door for cleaning later in the box.
  As far as the "Hills" go,there just mounds we make about 2 feet out of the water,about  a 3 ft diameter.We use rocks and wood to build up,then cover with dirt. Lots of different birds use these for nesting.

 gooser

[Graybeard]

So these "hills" you mention are actually mini islands in the water? My pond is mostly too deep to be able to do that very effectively. I suppose I might could have last summer when the water was so low but at full pool like it is now even the shallow areas are close to 5' deep.

I do have one island named "cattail island" in the pond but even it is staying a few inches under water so far this year most of the time. It is normally a few inches above water but not this year as we've gotten a lot of rain.

I also have a long peninsula that juts out into the pond with a lot of shore line I let grow up wild in weeds and brush and the ducks and geese seem to like that area pretty well.

The pair of mallards flew in again this morning for the third morning in a row and four geese flew over again but didn't set down.

[gooser]

So these "hills" you mention are actually mini islands in the water?

Yes, the water level maintains between 1 and 2 feet deep.It's marshy land with some cattails and reeds.
 
What we have there is flood land from the Saginaw river and butts up to Crow Island state game area.
My partner has 165 acres of farm land that borders it with also about 80 acres that years ago became flooded,so now we use it as our own private game area.This is where we have been putting up boxes and building nesting "islands" for the ducks and geese.
 What you could try in your pond or lake is floating islands. Using  wood or styrofoam,you make a small raft then put your dirt on that.You may want to anchor it down too. I've seen where our DNR made such rafts in black lake here in michigan.I don't know how long they might last though.   

gooser