The Bird Site - Build you own bird and wildlife monitoring system (Bird And Wildlife, Nest Box Cameras, Wildlife Cameras, Wildlife CCTV)

Build your own wildlife CCTV system

Modern CCTV components can now be used to build your own wildlife observation system in your own house and garden.

Nest box conversions offer a great starting point for observing the wildlife in your garden. When installing a camera in a nest box, the first decision to make is the choice of camera. The disadvantage to colour cameras is that you must provide adequate lighting to ensure a colour image - standard cameras will give a blank image without adequate lighting, and the day/night Infra-Red types will revert to monochrome IR mode.

A modern IR (Infrared) camera can provide excellent night vision shots. Care should be taken to ensure that water does not find its way into any electronic components if you use standard CCTV cameras, however weatherproof cameras, and even submersible cameras are available for use outdoors and underwater for very reasonable costs. Cables should also be protected from inquisitive animals as they have a tendency to chew or tug at loose cables.

The video signal can then be fed into any video equipment you choose, such as a television* for live viewing, or into a PC running software like i-Catcher that can record activities to your PC's hard disk. The live links to wildlife recording systems listed on this site all using the same basic components (video camera, capture card, PC and i-Catcher software).

Images from your system can be uploaded to a website if you have web space (for example provided by your ISP). If you have a broadband internet connection, you can provide a live view to your system over the internet. This can also be done over a dialup connection, but the update rate will be very slow, and obviously keeping a dialup line running continuously can cost a lot of money.

Many of the systems listed on this site have informative pages showing how they have been built. The links page will take you to a wide range of wildlife monitoring systems, with short explanations which will help you understand what's required to get you up and running.

If you would like to set up a monitored nest box, it is best to acquire a commercially built box from an approved supplier. The links page will take you to a supplier of high quality nest boxes with the cameras ready-mounted.

iCode Systems has a wide range of cameras suitable for monitoring wildlife, both inside nest boxes and in the garden. Take a look at the i-Catcher CCTV Shop to see the full range available.

* Most television sets will allow this, but some very simple sets and some older sets do not have a direct composite video input (either as SCART or as a separate connector) and instead only offer an aerial input. Such sets are not suitable for watching live video from composite CCTV cameras.

Picture of a Modern Mini CCD camera Which has LED illumination to make the job easier.

Modern CCD cameras with LED illumination make the job easier.

Picture of a Blue Tit flying in towards a bird box hole.

A good quality bird box and camera are the starting point for your conversion.