Natural branch shedding is the best

The formation of hollows in trees is typically initiated by wind damage, natural branch shedding, termites and other boring insects such as longicorn beetles.

Lightning, fire damage and internal fungal and bacterial decay are also common causes of hollows in trees.

In Australia, the formation of hollows tends to be an especially slow process because there are no vertebrate animals that actively engineer hollows, such as woodpeckers.

There are four main types of hollows: rounded hollows in the main stem, rounded hollows where branches have broken off, fire scars at the base of trees, and fissures or cracks in branches or the main stem, with vertical entrances.

Both living and dead trees provide natural hollows.

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