The ideal camera for my bird box

[tubac]

I use my ip cam set-up mainly to record wildlife on my ranch in Arizona. I finally found the perfect camera to go into my nest boxes . It is this camera but I got a much better price from @empireandy’s Amazon store.

Dahua 1A203TNI 2MP 3x IR Starlight Mini PTZ Network Camera

Buy your Dahua 1A203TNI from an Authorized Dahua Reseller! Offering free shipping on the leading brands of Network Surveillance Cameras and Accessories!

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Why it’s so good for medium sized birds like screech owls, gila woodpeckers and kestrels.
Well it fits nicely in a nest box, focuses to 4 inches, it pans and zooms 3x and has a 105 degree wide field of view PLUS it has a built in mic. Another feature is that the three ir lights are outside the vandal proof lens bubble, so no reflection. Here is a clip.

Tubac

 

[Q™]

Brilliant!

 

[Ssayer]

Very nice setup! I'm jealous because all though we occasionally hear an owl, we've only actually gotten one on cam ONE time in 24+ years!

 

[JNDATHP]

Please post more videos. Thanks.

 

[windguy]

Very cool! Excellent work. Thanks for sharing.
Would like to see an outside pic of the birdhouse and how the camera integrates to it.
Looking forward to seeing more video.

 

[tubac]

Very cool! Excellent work. Thanks for sharing.
Would like to see an outside pic of the birdhouse and how the camera integrates to it.
Looking forward to seeing more video.

 

[tubac]

dimensions are:
Outside-12.75” W
21” H
Inside-11.25” W
20.5” H
9.25” D
Here are some photos

 

[tubac]

View attachment 57360Ok dimensions are:
Outside-12.75” W
21” H
Inside-11.25” W
20.5” H
9.25” D
Here are some photos

 

[windguy]

@tubac - thanks for sharing pics. Nice job on the bird house. Curious, will a fledgling need help in getting to the opening? 20 years ago I built some bluebird houses for a relative and I seem to recall in my research that it was recommended to add something like grooves below the opening to help the bird climb up to the opening, acting like a ladder. I guess every bird species is different based on size and capabilities.

BTW - if you don't have a utility program to edit pics, I've been using a free download program for years called IRFANVIEW to edit pics so I can rotate images and/or annotate. Very easy to use. Download link below via cnet or direct from IRFANVIEW.

IrfanView (32-bit)

Download IrfanView (32-bit) for Windows to edit and convert images in an easy to use, yet powerful professional-grade software. IrfanView (32-bit) has had 1 update within the past 6 months.

download.cnet.com

IrfanView - Official Homepage - One of the Most Popular Viewers Worldwide

IrfanView ... one of the most popular viewers worldwide.

www.irfanview.com

 

[tubac]

Hi,
Two reasons the entry hole is high up with no perch or etched lines in a screech owl box. You don’t want birds like the Gila woodpecker harassing the owls. They need good purchase to successfully accomplish that.The owls have no trouble going in or out. As far as the fledglings go, it’s important that they stay in the box until flight feathers develop and their legs are strong enough to make the leap to the hole. Otherwise if the hole
Is too low an immature bird might launch itself out the hole before it is ready and fall to the ground. The box is about 15 feet up. The likelihood of death or injury is obvious.

I run Macs and and used an iPhone to upload the photos. First time I had that problem.
All my photos were the right way up in my iOS app. Must be some conflict with iOS photo app and this website.

Thanks,
Tubac

 

[justabeginner]

Thank you for posting this. I have wood duck boxes and this is exactly what I need.

 

[Purduephotog]

I was dumbfounded all that fluff could fit in a hole that small. that's awesome.

 

[windguy]

@tubac - thanks for the additional info. Good to know. You've obviously done your homework with good results.

 

[looney2ns]

Nice job!

Review-Dahua SD1A203T-GN Starlight Mini PTZ

Courtesy of Andy @ Empire Technology @EMPIRETECANDY we have a new Mini PTZ to check out. This is similar to the one that @tangent reviewed, except this one includes zoom and IR illumination, his model does not. You can see his review here of the SD12200T-GN: Review: Dahua Starlight Mini PT Dome...

ipcamtalk.com

 

[Q™]

@tubac - Got any more owl videos? Please?

 

[tubac]

So, I didn't expect this kind of activity so soon. Early this morning I discovered that there were actually 3 owls, each nesting in separate nest boxes. One male and two females. The females are each brooding an egg. Box at the top left is where the male Western Screech owl roosts. This box has this camera in it, my newest and best for my purposes. These nest boxes, their size and the cameras I chose, are a work in progress. The box on the bottom right is an old box, quite a bit smaller than than the other two, and has this camera in it. I've been waiting for the roosting owl to leave to replace it with a new nest box with this camera. (she never left) The box at top right is about 20% larger than the box at bottom right and has the same camera as the box bottom right. The box at top left is slightly larger say 5% than the box at top left. Check out the new video here:

@tubac - Got any more owl videos? Please?

The

 

[windguy]

@tubac - thanks for sharing. That is so cool. Now I see the perch in action. Well done!
Beautiful desert landscape pic too with that seasonal green color in view. Is that State or Federal parkland?

 

[tubac]

Most of that foreground view is mine. It backs on the Coronado State Forest.

 

[windguy]

That's impressive. How many acres?
I'm sure there's a good story to be told as to how you ended up in this area.
Internet shows Coronado as Fed land - US Forest Service. Massive park with some interesting history. Pictures are amazing with some pretty tall peaks.
What elevation are you at? Is it considered high desert, around 4,000ft?
One of these fine days I'll get that camper van I've been dreaming about and explore this area. Seems magical if you can hit the weather right.

 

[tubac]

In my locale 40 acre lots are about average.
I am up about 3500 feet. You know a lot of people think of the desert as a barren wasteland but it actually is extremely diverse in both its flora and fauna. There are many beautiful parks in Az., but because of its location near the border, I rarely run into anyone. You really need an off road vehicle like a Polaris to ride safely and comfortably on these little used Forest Service roads.
The scenery never gets old, I can tell you that. We have 5 seasons here Spring, Dry Summer, Wet Summer, Fall, and Winter