Giant 3D-printed 'bird nests' are being built in forests — and they could solve a critical issue

Researchers from the University of Melbourne are creating specialized bird nests 3D-printed from mushrooms, National Geographic reported.

Designer Dan Parker developed these experimental "prosthetic hollows" to attract specific bird species, such as the marsh tit.

In the past, these birds adapted to live in the hollows of dead trees. This provided them with a water-tight, insulated place to raise their chicks.

However, human activity has removed much of the habitat these birds rely on, and many species compete for the remaining tree hollows.

Humans have tried putting up bird boxes as a solution, but it is an imperfect one. First of all, other bird species, such as the great tit, often aggressively outcompete the marsh tit for these nesting sites.

Even if a marsh tit manages to occupy a bird box, it may not be all it's cracked up to be. Many commercially available bird boxes are poorly made, leading to leaky, drafty nests that can actually kill chicks.

Parker has created a solution to both problems: a nest made of biodegradable materials that is just as enclosed and insulated as a tree hollow.

Parker creates these nests by 3D-printing them with sawdust and plant-based biodegradable plastic. He then allows cultured reishi mushrooms to grow over and through them, creating a dense, durable mycelium material.

The material has been used for everything from building insulation to earplugs "because it grows relatively fast [and] strongly," Parker told National Geographic.

Not only is the material well-suited to the job, but the nest's design is tailored to the marsh tit. For example, Parker found that when the great tits took over the regular bird boxes with their standard-sized entrances, marsh tits moved into dormouse boxes with smaller entrances, so he designed his marsh tit boxes with small entrances to start with.

As a test of this design, Parker is deploying 10 of his boxes alongside 10 standard bird boxes certified by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds as a control. By monitoring conditions inside each box and checking what percentage of boxes are occupied and produce healthy chicks, he hopes to gather data about the best way to house these feathered friends.

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