Building a bird's nest should be easy. However, I have no idea how it is done. Birds don't have huge brains, and they don't have any formal training, but they manage to make incredible nests.
I can think of several friends who would benefit from a nest-in-a-box activity centre, and if one existed I'd get them one for christmas.
A gentle way of whiling away a couple of hours, the box would contain instructions of the differing techniques of various species, and well as an instructional DVD and a handful of suitable twigs to get you started.-- Fishrat, Nov 07 2004 Small Brains? http://www.sciencem.../feature/data/crow/toolmaking crows [JakePatterson, Nov 07 2004] (?) willow weaving http://www.greenche...s/willowweaving.pdf [po, Nov 12 2004] Are you only allowed to use your mouth?-- lostdog, Nov 07 2004 I hear they are partial to bubblewrap.-- po, Nov 07 2004 Are you expected to lay eggs in them afterwards...?-- DrCurry, Nov 07 2004 ..but considering what the meandering puppy said...-- po, Nov 07 2004 Perhaps the kit could include a strap on beak which you have to use. It could be a long and rather frenzied party/chisrtmas game. If cards were dealt proscribing to each participant what style of nest they should build one could include a cuckoo card to take over any nest at any given time. Also, different beaks for each contestant - these can be swapped on a barter basis for quantities of thatch. Combine this with a round of blackjack and think of the possibilities. Presumably M.I.T. would ruin it all with a twig counting system or something.-- weedy, Nov 07 2004 Building a nest for more than one crow can be murder.-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Nov 07 2004 Swiftlet technique: 1. Aim 2. Spit-- Shz, Nov 08 2004 //Are you expected to lay eggs in them afterwards...?// Dr Curried Eggs.-- Fishrat, Nov 08 2004 I spent ages on this idea, and now you're calling it bushtit?-- Fishrat, Nov 08 2004 You'd have to be a real loon to think of this. +-- sartep, Nov 08 2004 At first, I thought this would be a kit to construct a nest inside a box, like a birdhouse, from the outside. Sort of a "Ship in a bottle for Birdbrains."-- half, Nov 08 2004 an upturned bird nest can be made into a delightful bonnet for an afternoon sojourn beside the river.-- benfrost, Nov 09 2004 It wasn’t like Charlene not to answer, so I knocked again. Harder. The door creaked open. “Charlene!” I cried. Nothing, nothing but the scratching of chickens...but wait, were the chickens outside, or inside? I wandered through the house. Something was wrong, very wrong. There were bits of straw and twigs everywhere. “Charlene! Charlie!” Still no answer. But there were peeps, coming from the bedroom. Blood pounding in my ears, I pushed open the door, and my god! There they were, buck naked in a gigantic nest where their bed had been. And they were gulping down worms! Filthy worms! That’s when I felt the hot breath on my neck, and turned to face— <Insert fracas at this point. Horrible screams, followed briefly by silence, then by a rather satisfied clucking.>-- pluterday, Nov 09 2004 coming next - web building...-- po, Nov 09 2004 A good un.-- FarmerJohn, Nov 10 2004 I craned my neck to see the possibilities here.....but I didn't have any sparrow ideas. Actually, nothing could be feather from the truth - I wrent home and thought about it some more. I won't crow about my success.-- normzone, Nov 10 2004 How to link Normzone's appalling puns with the more traditional fish puns? Perch. Or, I shamefully suppose, flying fish.-- weedy, Nov 11 2004 I would actually buy this, and display with all my other bird stuff. A huge +, and a slight feeling of unease, if some young whippersnapper sees this idea, and goes straight to K-Tel, and then becomes a millionaire. +-- blissmiss, Nov 11 2004 i'm not building one. i have NO nesting instinct.-- elfling, Nov 12 2004 Just like jenga -- would you have a 'club size' addition which is basically huge and you can curl up in it once it's finished!?
Oh - actually I suppose that's baked. It's called a treehouse!-- britboy, Nov 12 2004 random, halfbakery