DISPLACED animals will have new homes, thanks to the efforts of the Berry Men’s Shed.
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The community organisation has constructed 20 nesting boxes, with another 25 to come, to provide shelter for wildlife during the construction of the Berry bypass.
Construction company Fulton Hogan, which is completing the work on the bypass, covered the costs of labour and materials for the boxes as part of its community outreach program.
Shed secretary Richard Wiseman said Fulton Hogan approached the men’s shed to ask it to construct 45 nesting boxes for the variety of animals which will be displaced due to the bypass.
“There are 14 different types of animals, such as birds and possums,” Mr Wiseman said.
“And they all require different sized nesting boxes.
“These have been built to exact specifications.”
Mr Wiseman said a lot of animals would be displaced.
“We created these boxes made out of marine plywood, which is waterproof,” he said.
“We also carpeted the roofs to avoid bees building hives in them.
“The boxes have varying sizes holes for each different animal.”
Chairman of the Berry Men’s Shed operations committee Peter Johnstone said around 10 people worked on building the nests and spent around 135 hours to complete the first batch.
“We will be making the rest of the boxes in the New Year,” he said.
“The first lot have been delivered.
“There were experts involved in the design requirements for the boxes, which was passed on to us for construction.”
Mr Johnstone said the provision to create an alternative habitat for the displaced animals was excellent.
“To take part in this project is great for the Berry Men’s Shed and it’s great that the community has been involved in the Berry bypass,” he said.
“It’s a way to overcome any disturbance to the natural habitat of these animals.
“It’s been great for community groups like us, but also for local businesses as all the materials we used for the boxes were sourced locally.”
Mr Johnstone said the production process for the first set of boxes ran very smoothly and he hoped that would continue for the next lot.
Fulton Hogan undertook a number of surveys in the area on trees with hollows.
The boxes are put near or in the trees and the animals instinctively relocate to the boxes as clearing is done.
