Up until late last year I had 6 screech owls living in a bird house high in a tree. Unfortunately the tree blew over in a storm and I had to have it removed. I have not put the bird house back up and now my yard has increased in the lizard/ geko population tremendously. Where as before, I only had 2 big brown lizards that patroled the yard. If I put the bird house back up, will the owls come back? And, any suggestions on how to keep the critters out of the house? I have noticed that the spider population is down significantly. It's fun seeing nature work the way it is supposed to, organically.

Not sure if the owls will come back by installing a bird house, but the increase in lizards is probably due to the lack of predators. We've had a bumper crop of lizards this year, (have seen lots of BABIES!) 4 or 5 different varieties in our yard. (N. Arlington) We've had an owl family in the neighborhood somewhere, but haven't seen them lately. Hopefully they got the rat I'd been seeing....


As for keeping lizards out of the house, the only suggestion I can make is to find and stop up any nooks and crannies you find around the outside. We have gekkos in the attic, and occasionally will get a baby in the house. They're sure difficult to catch! I don't mind them up there as I know they're eating roaches. Startling to find a lizard unexpectantly in the shower though.


Unless rodents are a problem for you, I'd not replace the birdhouse just yet. The lizards may prove more beneficial to you than the owls.

We get geckos in the house occasionally & have found that it's fairly easy to use a shoebox w/lid to catch them. They'll run in the box & you can close the lid & return them to the yard.

Patty

We love our lizards (anole), geckos, toads and garter snakes. They have brought the "bad" bugs under control and kept them at bay, while the "good" bugs seem to be happy and abundant. Although they may startle me once in a while (nothing like stepping into the shower and having a gecko run over your foot ) it's not so bad having them in the house to control the little bugs that can be so annoying, including those nasty little spiders that pack a punch! If only the cats didn't find them so appetizing...
Kathe

I guess if I had owls keeping the population of local predators away, I would shoo the owls away. You need the lizards and geckoes more than anything. Insect eating birds are okay but not owls.

I have cats which seem to keep the lizard and gecko population down. We used to see lots of them but since the cats, hardly any. Of course they bring us the occasional rat, so there is some benefit.