Skip to content
Anchor Pest Services logo
(603) 785-0118
House Sparrow — species photo
Daniel Brady · NH-Licensed Pesticide Applicator · License #782664

How to Get Rid of House Sparrows

Doable with care
House sparrows are a non-native, introduced species with no federal protection, so sealing nesting cavities, removing nests, and installing ledge deterrents are legal DIY moves — unlike a native sparrow, which you cannot touch. Cover vents, gable ends, and dryer/exhaust outlets with ¼-inch hardware cloth, fit a chimney cap, and add anti-roost spikes or bird wire on ledges before spring nesting season. Removing nests works but must be repeated, since sparrows re-colonize quickly. Scare devices alone don't hold — sparrows habituate to reflective tape and noise within days. There's no legal DIY chemical option for bird control; a heavy colony on a large or commercial-scale building is a professional job.

At a glance

  • Difficulty: Intermediate
  • Time: A weekend to inspect and seal; ongoing deterrent upkeep through nesting season
  • Cost: Low — hardware cloth, caulk, ledge deterrents
  • Success: Good with complete, repeated exclusion; poor if even one cavity stays open
The honest answer

Can you DIY House Sparrow?

The verdict on House Sparrow DIY

Doable with careIntermediate

Legal, doable exclusion — because it's a non-native, unprotected bird.

The house sparrow is a non-native, introduced species and is explicitly NOT protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act, so a homeowner can legally seal nesting cavities, remove nests, and install deterrents — something that would be illegal on a native songbird look-alike. The complication isn't legality, it's thoroughness: sparrows recolonize the one gap you miss, and a colony on a commercial-scale building overwhelms a homeowner's reach.

The playbook

The 5 DIY methods — honestly graded

Every approach graded for this species, in IPM order — prevention first, chemistry late. Pick a method to see how it works, the steps, and what it actually takes.

Prevention / Exclusion

Works well

The durable fix — works when every cavity is sealed before nesting season; a single gap left open undoes it.

House sparrows nest in building cavities, vents, signage, and eaves. Physically blocking those openings before the spring nesting season removes the sites they need before they claim them.

Best for: Stopping repeat nesting on a single-family home

  1. Screen every cavity

    Install ¼-inch hardware cloth over vents, gable ends, and dryer/exhaust outlets. Fit a proper chimney cap.

    Tip
    Do this before spring nesting season begins — sparrows in the Northeast start scouting cavities as early as March.

  2. Close the gaps and remove ledges

    Seal gaps under eaves and behind signage with exterior sealant. Remove flat ledges or add sloped covers so they can't be used as nest platforms.

    Caution
    Sealing an active nest with eggs or young inside is a welfare problem even though it's legal — check for occupancy first.

Tools & materials

¼-inch hardware clothTin snipsExterior sealantChimney capLadder
Before you start
Incomplete sealing is the most common failure — sparrows find the one gap you missed.
Reality check

Why DIY falls short here

Not scare tactics — the specific, proportionate reasons a home attempt can stall for this species.

Instant re-colonization

Sparrows find and reuse the one cavity you didn't seal — exclusion has to be essentially 100% complete to hold.

Misidentification risk

A native sparrow look-alike (chipping, song, or grasshopper sparrow) IS federally protected — removing or harming one by mistake is an MBTA violation.

Colony scale on larger buildings

Commercial buildings and barns can have dozens of active cavities that need simultaneous sealing, beyond what one homeowner can reasonably tackle alone.

Straight talk

How risky is it, really?

An honest read — most nuisance species are genuinely low risk, and we say so.

Low risk

House sparrows are primarily a nuisance and sanitation species, not a major direct health threat. The real cost is nesting debris, droppings, and displacement of native birds — not disease from casual contact.

  • Droppings and nesting debris (sanitation, occasional mites)Occasional

    A problem in heavy, established roosts — not casual contact

    CDC / NH DHHS histoplasmosis guidance

  • Histoplasmosis from disturbing large droppings accumulationsRare

    A proportionate risk only where droppings have built up heavily over time and are disturbed during cleanup — wet the material and wear gloves and an N95 if cleaning a large accumulation

    CDC

  • Displacement of native cavity-nesting birdsCommon

    An ecological cost (competition for nest sites), not a human-health risk

    USFWS / All About Birds

When to call a pro

House Sparrow Colony Bigger Than One Homeowner Can Handle?

A commercial-scale nesting site needs simultaneous sealing across dozens of cavities. Anchor Pest Services handles full exclusion across southern and central New Hampshire. Family-owned since 2017, NH license #782664.

Call a pro when…

  • Nesting keeps recurring despite your own sealing
  • A multi-cavity site (barn, commercial building, apartment complex) with dozens of active nests
  • Uncertainty about whether the bird is a protected native sparrow look-alike

General Pest Control

Most single-family homes can handle house sparrow exclusion themselves. Call a pro for a commercial-scale colony, repeated failed sealing attempts, or if you're not certain a nest belongs to an unprotected house sparrow rather than a protected native sparrow.

Get a Free inspection(603) 785-0118

Keep them out

  • Seal cavities before spring nesting season begins
  • Screen vents, gable ends, and dryer outlets with ¼-inch hardware cloth
  • Add ledge deterrents to sills and signage where sparrows perch
New Hampshire context

House sparrows in New Hampshire

In New Hampshire, house sparrows begin scouting nest cavities as early as March and can raise multiple broods into late summer, so the exclusion window opens well before Manchester's typical warm-up. Sealing gaps in late winter to early spring — before the first broods start — gets ahead of the season instead of chasing an active nest.

Peak season

Spring through late summer, with multiple broods per season

Before you treat

Make sure it's a House Sparrow

Two quick detours worth taking — confirm the ID, then learn what drew it in so it doesn't come back.

Not sure it's this?

Identify House Sparrow in the Pest Library

Why is it here?

What actually attracts House Sparrow

Common questions

Frequently asked

Sources & further reading(4)
  1. [1]
    U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service — Service Publishes Final List of Non-Native Bird Species

    House sparrow's non-native, MBTA-unprotected status

    govverified 2026-07-13
  2. [2]
    Federal Register — List of Bird Species to Which the Migratory Bird Treaty Act Does Not Apply

    Official MBTA-exempt species list

    govverified 2026-07-13
  3. [3]
    Cornell Lab / All About Birds — What Is the Migratory Bird Treaty Act?

    MBTA protection scope explainer

    encyclopediaverified 2026-07-13
  4. [4]
    CDC — Histoplasmosis Prevention

    Proportionate, cleanup-context histoplasmosis risk from bird droppings

    govverified 2026-07-13

Written & reviewed by

Verified

Daniel Brady

NH-Licensed Pesticide Applicator · License #782664 (NHDAMF, RSA 430)

Daniel Brady is the New Hampshire–licensed applicator behind Anchor Pest Services, a family-owned pest control company serving the Manchester area since 2017.

Verify license

Last updated July 2026

More in Wildlife & Birds

Other species you can tackle

Same category — the dot shows each one's DIY verdict at a glance (green = friendly, amber = doable with care, red = call a pro).

Professional Pest Control

House Sparrow Colony Bigger Than One Homeowner Can Handle?

A commercial-scale nesting site needs simultaneous sealing across dozens of cavities. Anchor Pest Services handles full exclusion across southern and central New Hampshire. Family-owned since 2017, NH license #782664.

Get a Free inspection(603) 785-0118
  • Legal, humane exclusion methods
  • NH-licensed technicians (#782664)
  • Free inspection — same-day service across southern NH

NH License #782664 · No obligation · We answer in person

Keep Exploring

Your next step

Call (603) 785-0118Get an Inspection