Do you have birds nesting in your roof?

For billions of years, birds have used the natural environment to nest, and it has obviously been a success, what with 10,000 known bird species in the world.

But now, birds have a new place to nest, and that is within the buildings we create.

Manmade structures, such as our homes, are a perfect nesting place for birds. They provide a level of weather and predator protection equal to or beyond those in nature, and they are in fact often the only safe nesting place in urban environments as more and more trees are felled and more and more acres of land are pummelled and converted for our own use.

And so, we can hardly blame birds for seeking shelter in our roofs.

Most people realise that they have birds nesting in their roof when they are awoken in the early morning by nestlings. Our range of bird proofing services have helped to prevent birds from nesting in the first place. But what if you already have birds nesting?

How do they get in?

As you can expect, birds aren't built to tunnel into concrete and mortar, nor are they built to displace shingles or pull cladding away from its support.

Birds get into a roof simply by taking advantage of decay or neglect. For instance if the side of a roof has decaying mortar leaving an entry hole, then a bird will take advantage of it.

What's in my roof?

It's important for us to say that there are in fact only a few bird species that will nest in your roof, and most of them are fully protected by law. And as a result, we are limited in what we can do to help homeowners who have birds nesting in their roof.

House sparrows and starlings are the most likely candidates. But feral pigeons, swifts, swallows, Jackdaws and barn owls are also known to nest in roofs.

What can I do?

Birds are rarely the cause of the damage that let them into a roof, and they rarely cause any further damage to a roof during the nesting period (officially from February until August) and so, we see no harm in giving birds sanctuary and letting them nest.

However, if your home is structurally weakened by decay or neglect or you have a leak, then you can take action but we recommend that you call your Local Council for guidance, given that the birds nesting may be protected by law.

When we work with homeowners with birds nesting in their roof, first of all we must consider that it is illegal to disturb or destroy an active nest. But, special rules do apply if a nest is discovered during renovation or repair work. In this case, what you can do is deny access to the birds and install an artificial nesting box close to the original site for them.

The solution for your home depends on your individual circumstances. Please give us a call on 01635 250 852 to find out more about how we can help.

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