The benefits of a golf course extend well beyond the actual game itself. Golf courses provide habitat for a variety of wildlife including birds. Some birds make their nests within the tree canopy, but there are a number of others that require a cavity to build a nest. Habitats for cavity nesters decline as areas are developed and when dead trees are removed from urban landscapes.
Oftentimes, golf courses provide a great source of food and cover for cavity-nesting birds, but natural nesting opportunities are still limited due to a lack of dead tree cavities. By providing bird boxes, golf courses play an important role in the environment for these birds. Nest boxes are also an excellent way to involve golfers and the community that have an interest in birding to help install, monitor and clean nesting boxes from time to time.
Brian Beckner, withNative Bird Boxes, services golf facilities throughout Florida and supplied this excellent video of screech owls recently found in nest boxes on South Florida golf courses.
Source: Todd Lowe (tlowe@usga.org)
Information on the USGA’s Course Consulting Service
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