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Carol – I’m keeping my fingers crossed the eggs in your nestbox will be okay during the cold snap. Has the female laid a 5th egg yet? She should start incubating them soon.
Connie,
Great to hear your blues are building a nest also! I heard we are suppose to have a warmer than usual Spring. I’m hoping it’s true. It would really benefit the bluebirds as well as other nesting bird species.Hi David,
That is wonderful news! I really enjoy seeing your photos of your Bluebirds! Once I can get rid of the H.Sparrows trying to take over my nestbox I think the bluebirds will move in. They are hanging around and checking out the box but the sparrows run them off.
Carol,
I was thinking if I relocate the H.Sparrow far enough away he won’t return. Was gonna release him in a park a mile or two from here but just realized the parks here are closed due to the Covid-19 virus outbreak. I will dispose of the Sparrow then after I trap him and capture him. Can you recommend a decent way to do this? Corny question I know. Also do I need to trap his female companion after I dispose of him? Isn’t it just the male H.Sparrows that “bond” to the nestbox?Hi Sassy,
I’m about to grab some coffee and go monitor the situation. I was asking about the Gilbertson PVC nestbox. If you google it you’ll see what it looks like. It’s suppose to be sparrow resistant. I already have a slot-opening nestbox and up until this year it’s worked great. I’ve had 2-3 broods of bluebirds fledge from that box each summer without very many problems. I just ordered a Van Ert Sparrow Trap that Carol recommended. I’ll be putting it to good use once it gets here via the mail.Hi Lisa,
See my reply to Carol. When I saw the male H.Sparrow aggressively go after the bluebirds and chase them away it made me furious. Not gonna let him win this battle.Carol,
I took your advice and just ordered a Van Ert Sparrow Trap online. There’s a YouTube video I found that shows you how it works and how to capture the bird after it’s been trapped inside the nestbox. Is there a humane way of disposing of it? Or I was thinking I can relocate the H.sparrow to the park and release it. I just want him out of my yard. I’ll have to wait a few days for the Van Ert Trap to be delivered. It can’t get here soon enough. – Regards, DanaJudy –
The more bluebirds the merrier! It’s great to know their populations continues to rise! It’s one of the best hobbies for anyone who loves nature to get involved in. And it really does make a difference.Hi Rich –
I have a pair interested in my nestbox too already. I’m in Lancaster, Pa. Like you I have never seen them this interested so early on. I’m guessing the mild winter we have had here may have something to do with it. Last year I didn’t get a pair nesting until May. We had an ongoing cold spell thru April last year so in that case I’m glad they waited.Hi Carol and Sassy – Yes, the bluebirds are still around. They have now started defending the nestbox from other birds. Yesterday morning they were dive-bombing a starling that had landed on the roof of the box. I was watching out the living room window quietly cheering them on. There are other bluebirds still coming to my mealworm feeder but this particular pair seems very interested in the nestbox. I can’t wait for nest building to start but that is still weeks away. – Regards, Dana
blue diamond:
My pleasure! I think your idea of tallying up the number of babies fledged at the end of the season is a great idea! 92 fledglings is awesome!! That’s almost 100 more bluebirds added to the population as a whole! I think it would be fun to do this tally at the end of summer again next year. It’s nice to get an idea of what progress we all here are making helping our beloved “blues”.If I remember correctly I think I had a total of 9 fledge from my slotted nest box. During the 2nd nesting my bluebird pair had 3 fledglings hanging around from their 1st brood/nest which took place at another location. So if you add those 3 babies to the 9 that fledged from my box that would make it a total of 12.
Connie,
My bluebirds disappear this time of year too. Mealworms do not seem to keep them around. I think this time of year they switch to berries while still feeding on live insects. What I do is wait until the weather turns cold. Usually by November or December they’ll show up again usually as a family flock of 8-10 birds (the young will have their adult plumage by then) and eat up as many mealworms as they can. After that they will stick around as long as I keep the mealworms coming. I feed them dried mealworms (sprinkled with some calcium carbonate) as I cannot afford the live ones. They also like peanut butter suet. Hope this helps.
