Another (Strange) Question

[Cakepro]

Okay, don't laugh at this one, but I am really curious (and really nosy)!

I have been a reefkeeper for 6+ years, and the neatest thing about having a 100 gallon mini-ocean in your home is that there are a million different species of life in it. From the minutest fauna to the biggest fish, coral, or invertebrate in your tank, life in a reef tank is vastly different at night, and many really neat nocturnal things happen when it's pitch dark in the tank (and the house).

Fishes are not bothered by light in the red spectrum, so it's easy to color the lens of your flashlight red with a Sharpie marker and watch the nightlife in the tank without disturbing anyone. Red LED's can also be employed in the canopy of the tank for nighttime observation as well.

I was wondering if birds perhaps have this same 'feature' so that I can shine a red beam of light into the nestbox or install a weak red LED in the ceiling of the nestbox to observe what's going on without freaking anyone out. Even in the daylight, the nestboxes I've made are quite dark because the opening is pretty small. I could easily install a weak LED and a webcam atop one of the nestboxes, covered by plexiglass so the curious parents couldn't get to the electronics.

Would this work? I've seen nature shows where scientists have done such things with mammals and reptiles, but haven't seen anything like this for birds.

CRAZY, I know, but I want to observe everything! Newbie syndrome, you know? Plus I homeschool and this would be an excellent educational experience for my kids as well.

Thanks for indulging my silly questions!

[Janie]

I have no idea but I do know that in-box nest cam's are the newest craze happening in the wild bird world. My girlfriend has one in her bluebird box and we watched everything from egg laying to hatching to fledging. Even in the middle of the night, you can watch everything going on and the birds see none of the light from the camera which is TINY and attached to the inside roof of the bluebird box. All of the wild bird stores sell them these days for around $100 or less. Lovebird nest boxes are much smaller than a standard bluebird box. The camera is at least 4 + inches above the top rim of the nest and makes no sound. Again, I have no earthly idea if this would be a good idea with lovebirds or if it would be safe.

[mjm8321]

I cannot remember who, but a member of the board had a webcam in their lovies nest box. Perhaps someone with a better memory will recall who that was. I believe a green LED would disturb them less, but I'm not an expert on LEDs.

[n8wb]

That is a great question. Not sure what could be seen at night. My lovebird seems to be in the same spot in the morning as she was when she went to bed the night before.

I am curious about the cams, though. Are they wireless and do they include sound? That is a really cool idea!

[Janie]

Jeff, the one my friend has does have sound and is connected to a cable that runs out of the box, down the pole that the box is mounted to and is buried underground so that a lawn mower won't run over it. Then, the cable goes up the side of her house and into a window where she has it attached to her TV. Many people on my "bluebird" forum have them and some have paid under $50 at Sam's, I think. WildBirds Unlimited carries them as do nearly all wild bird stores. Very popular item. They come black & white or in color although the color does not show up inside the box and the black and white is cheaper so most people use those.