Nesting Boxes in Selsdon Wood

The FSW have installed a number of nesting boxes for birds and roosting boxes for bats over the years - see maps and listings below. The map on the left shows the small bird boxes and that on the right shows owl nesting boxes and bat roosting boxes. Both listings show the condition of each box.

Photos of installations of some of the boxes are shown below in reverse chronological order.

Boxes for Small Birds
Nesting Boxes 11:3:25.pdf Nesting Boxes 11:3:25.pdf
Size : 148.088 Kb
Type : pdf
Boxes Map Small Birds 13:3:25.pdf Boxes Map Small Birds 13:3:25.pdf
Size : 175.47 Kb
Type : pdf
Boxes for Owls  & Bats
Boxes Map Bat and Owl 3:2:26.jpg Boxes Map Bat and Owl 3:2:26.jpg
Size : 184.525 Kb
Type : jpg
18 February 2026
A Vincent Wildlife Trust 'slot box' was put up by the Budds on a 'veteran' Oak this afternoon.

These Vincent boxes are proven to be much more successful than any other type in circulation at the moment. Seven species have been found in them elsewhere to date. They mimic the splits in trees that many species favour. There are three thicknesses of slot that appeal to different species. 

The surrounding Hazel has been selectively trimmed to ensure an uninterrupted flight path to and from the track.
20 January 2025
We received a donation of a brand new bat box - left in the Lost Property box by Kathy Vermoortele. She had been on Bat Walks with the Budds. She has bats in her garden and had received for Xmas more boxes than she needed so she gave one to us. Steve made some alterations to it then, today, put it up on a mature Oak next to a 20' Yew on the corner of Beech Grove, where it intersects with Avis Grove. It is positioned facing Southeast and is protected by a large bough above. There's clear visibility to bats hawking up and down the path and in the woodland openings so it stands a reasonable chance of being utilised. The slot has been reduced to about 21 mm, which will make it accessible to Pips and Brown Long Eared, etc.
5 November 2024
Two  new bat boxes made by Jim were put up today by Steve & Ruth. The one below is on Bluebell Grove, on the leg between Smith Grove and Leafy Grove and the one to the right is on the junction of Smith Grove and Bluebell Grove, in view of the bench.

27 October 2024
Some of the boxes made by Jim this month were put up by the team on a Sunday Work Session.

16 October 2024
These bird and bat boxes were made by Jim Dunning.

16 May 2024 
report & photo by Steve Budd

We recovered this hollowed birch nest box, after it had fallen from its previous location in Pool Grove. It's been cleaned and dried out and rehung at The Gorses junction, by the bench and opposite the owl carvings.

The box that had been successfully used in that location was without a roof and in a generally dilapidated state. The remainder of the wreckage is in the office as the metal reinforcing plate could be used on another box if needed.

4 Bird Boxes made by Jim Dunning

March 2023. 

2 Bird Boxes in the Jubilee

Installed February 2023. 

One of these boxes was visited by a Blue Tit just one week later - see the Bird Feeding Station page.

Blue Tits Nesting In Bat Box
April 2022 (RB)
Robin Box installed in Broom Path
April 2022 (RB)
Bat Boxes
Installed in Leafy Grove in August 2021

Boxes installed in Selsdon Wood prior to 2021

Five bird boxes were installed in 2012 (purchased from Leeway Woodwork) and in 2015/6 we added more bird boxes and one bat box, which had been made for us by Jim Dunning. The locations are shown in the above map and some of the boxes are shown below. SInce all boxes are close to paths there is an opportunity for people to watch birds going in and out when they are in use. Boxes also provide roosting places for birds and for young birds that survive somewhere to hide from bad weather and from adult birds.


Nest boxes 2020.xlsx Nest boxes 2020.xlsx
Size : 11.587 Kb
Type : xlsx
sw nest box map 10.5.20.pdf sw nest box map 10.5.20.pdf
Size : 296.244 Kb
Type : pdf
Tawny Owl Nest Box.pdf Tawny Owl Nest Box.pdf
Size : 419.043 Kb
Type : pdf
nest box list 7.4.16.pdf nest box list 7.4.16.pdf
Size : 189.882 Kb
Type : pdf
Owl Nest Box Designs.pdf Owl Nest Box Designs.pdf
Size : 839.555 Kb
Type : pdf
Little Owl Nest Box.pdf Little Owl Nest Box.pdf
Size : 419.814 Kb
Type : pdf
Linden Glade nest box
with Blue Tits feeding young 19/5/20
The base of this box is coming loose - a repair job for when nesting season is over.
Bird Box in Pool Grove
with Blue Tits nesting 9/5/20
Baby Squirrel in Owl Box
The owl box on the western side of Smith Grove just before Linden Glade is regularly occupied by squirrels. This 2017 photo shows one of the pair of baby squirrels born and reared in that box.
Tawny Owl Box being erected
3/12/17 -  Neale and Ted agreed a possible site for the Tawny Owl nest box and later Neale and Jim put it into position. They also added woodchips to the Tawny box and the Little Owl box (see below).
Bat Box In Courtwood Grove
Bird Box in Linden Glade
This is the box shown in the Birds gallery on the Fauna page with Blue Tits nesting.
Bird Box in Beech Grove near the Noakes Way end.
Owl Box in Linden Glade
2015 Bird Box in  Greenhill Way
Wren nesting in Bat Box
7th July 2019 -  A Wren appears to have taken up residence in the bat box sited above the store room door.
Bat Box in Leafy Grove 
erected 4/11/18
Little Owl Box
installed towards the far end of Farleigh Border 5/11/17.
Now needing new front door 9/5/20.
Bird Box in The Gorses
All the boxes in Middle Gorse are of the same design with side opening.
Bird Box in Farleigh Border
Old Bird Box in Farleigh Border
One of a number of old boxes round the reserve, most of which are rotten and probably unusable. They were sponsored  by the RSPB and installed in the early 80s.
Bird Box in Beech Grove between Avis Grove & Broad Walk.
Older Bird Box in Greenhill Way by the path to David's Crook showing signs of attack by a Greater Spotted Woodpecker which has made a large hole in the front. 
These birds are notorious for such attacks. They prey upon eggs and nestlings of a wide variety of birds, particularly those using nestboxes.  They may enter the box by enlarging the nesthole, but they appear to locate nestlings by sound as a new hole is often hacked in the side of the box as here.
This is why we usually reinforce the entrance hole with a metal plate when creating the boxes but it cannot stop the type of attack that has happened here.