March 22, 2004

Boise State Seeks Information on Missing Nest Boxes

Boise State University is seeking information about what happened to more than 75 nest boxes used for research on American kestrels, also known as sparrow hawks, that have been removed from electrical power poles in the area north of Kuna over the past two weeks. The boxes, mounted about 10 feet up the poles, have disappeared without a trace, said Boise State biology professor Alfred Dufty, director of the research project. Several graduate students who are currently conducting studies of the nesting sparrow hawks are in jeopardy of losing the next year’s worth of research if the nests are not replaced, he said. “Time is critical because the birds are now prospecting for nest sites, and if we don’t have the boxes up they will go elsewhere to breed,” said Dufty. “This would be a significant setback for our students, who are supported by state-funded assistantships.” The nest boxes were located along roadways in the area north of Kuna and south of Interstate 84, Dufty said. They were clearly labeled as property of Boise State University, and installed with the permission of Idaho Power Company. Idaho Power officials contacted by Dufty were unaware the boxes had been removed, and told him it was very unlikely that anyone at the company was involved in the boxes’ disappearances. Boise State researchers first began mounting the nest boxes on the power poles about five years ago, Dufty said. Only a handful of the 87 original nest boxes remain. Graduate students have constructed new nest boxes to replace the missing ones, but Dufty is concerned they might also disappear after they are mounted. “It’s expensive in terms of both time and money to have to replace all these nest boxes. If we’re going to have to do that, we want to make sure that they don’t disappear again,” Dufty said. Anyone with any information about the missing nest boxes is requested to contact the Ada County Sheriff’s Office at 377-6790 or 426-1453. -end- Contact Alfred Dufty Biology 426-3263 Media contact Janelle Brown communications and marketing 426-1790