About Us

Bark Boxes was set up in 2017 by Tony and Mary Martin, working in rural Northumberland. Having worked in ecological consultancy for 30 years we were well aware of the importance of effective measures to help conserve nesting birds or roosting bats. We found the current options rather clunky and ugly, or prone to rot after a few years, and so set out to design an alternative approach. After many years of trials we had a eureka moment.

Design input is provided by the team at E3 Ecology ltd, which includes specialists in ornithology, bats and the full range of protected species.

How it started…

Over the past 20 years we have been experimenting with different options for the construction of bat boxes to help to conserve and enhance bat populations. We tried different materials, different construction methods and different surface treatments. We worked with our tree team to see what was easiest to put up, and what there the problems with current designs.

We were keen to use materials that minimised environmental impacts of construction, and a few years ago started experimenting with a recycled polyamide felt that could be quickly formed into a wide variety of shapes, was rot-proof and strong. Rather than using woodcrete for the finishing coats we use a concrete mix with sustainably sourced recycled cellulose fibres. The high fibre content of the outer layer allows rapid weathering for a natural look .

the bat box is in the top right corner of the image, the rest is tree.

Our Philosophy…

Bark Boxes is part of a range of activities on the farm at Pasture House that seek to combine rural employment with nature conservation. Ecological consultancy is the cornerstone to our work, but we manage around 150 acres of grassland, woodland, wetland and mire and produce low input, species-rich haylage for horses, and sell free range eggs and cross-bred rare breed sheep, selected for high quality meat and low input management.

On the land we are developing innovative techniques for low input farmland habitat creation and management that captures soil carbon, reduces run-off rates and increases biodiversity using an approach we term wildlife permaculture.

Bark Boxes tie in with this philosophy, using recycled materials, promoting wildlife, and progressively creating new rural jobs.

Inspiration

The eureka moment in design development came whilst on Henry Andrews’ course on bats in trees. With the techniques we have developed we were not constrained to the shape of moulds or by flat sheets of timber. We could produce designs that mimic tree features, and finish off boxes with a texture to reflect the bark on trees. Bats have spent millions of years finding roosting opportunities in trees, but just a few decades using bat and bird boxes. The result is a range of boxes that, with care in their siting and colouration, disappear in the tree but are readily found by bats and birds.

Success was demonstrated at an early stage when a blue tit started roosting in a box hanging up to cure, before it had even left the production line.

Our boxes are likely to be used by a range of species, with their description based on the target species.

The future is bright.

Currently our boxes are entirely hand made. Each one is uniquely numbered to encourage monitoring and feedback, and designs can be rapidly fine-tuned and improved. In addition to a standard range of bat and bird boxes we can create one-off designs, and boxes for rarer species such as willow tit.

Bespoke Service

As the boxes are hand finished we have control over the texture created. With a month or more’s notice we can produce boxes to your specification, and to a colour and bark texture of your choice. If you have ideas you would like to try out give us a ring to discuss options and prices.

We have made boxes for barn owl, dormice and bumble bees and are working on a design for pine marten.

Research

We have put up around 60 of our boxes nearby to monitor their long term success and to fine-tune design.

To better assess the affects of boxes in new plantation woodland, where tree holes are lacking, we are undertaking two years of monitoring bats and birds at a 15 year old Sitka spruce plantation in Scotland, where a range of boxes will be installed in 2019 for long-term monitoring and to assess which species are influenced by a lack of nest/roost sites.