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Things have gotten crazier!!! Mealworms were not eaten last evening. I checked the house this morning. A single feather stuck out of the door. Other than that the nest was undisturbed. Regular nest on top. Ice cold eggs lying underneath. I moved the ice cold eggs up into what was left of the cup of the nest. I put out mealworms. No one came immediately. However, I just looked out my window and there is a female perched on the Peterson box and a male on the adjacent NaBs box. Now what do I do??? Never had this dilemma before. Clean out the box? Watch it? For all I know this is a whole new couple who will leave if they can’t get quarters in the Peterson box.
I haven’t. But as I was pulling out of my garage t leave I saw a bird n top of the Peterson house. I was running late and could.run back in to get my binos. Fingers crossed,that it wasn’t a HOSP. Will report in the morning. I definitely have never seen a nest messed up the way this one was.
Just to update. The male never returned. He was omnipresent and very attentive, so I have to believe that something happened to him. The female has laid four eggs and I’ve seen her going into the nest box for short periods of time. It’s cold and rainy here today, so,she’s gotten an extra helping of mealworms.
(As an aside, this has been the strangest backyard bird season I can remember. I had no cardinals at my feeders until January. We barely had a winter, yet the bluebird seemed to arrive quite late. In addition, for the first time in 19 years the TRES checked out their usual box and never returned. )
Just a quick update. Mama is coming to my whistle, but there is still no sign of her mate. Today she laid a third egg. In years past, I’ve had a mother disappear after the eggs have hatched. The father raised the clutch successfully. If the father is gone for good, would the mother abandon or raise them herself? She seems very timid compare to her erstwhile mate.
Thanks for the responses. I haven’t seen the male yet and actually haven’t seen the female this morning. I’m going to wait a couple of hours to check the nest box. Keeping my fingers crossed and mealworms at the ready. (If you only know how many I ordered in a fit of irrational optimism!LOL)
Thanks again for all the comments and information. I think what I read about dog food was that you could mix some kibble or crumbs of kibble in with whatever you’re keeping your mealworms in. Right now I have mine in a container with oatmeal. I had been thinking of taking some of the crumbs from the bottom of the bag of dry dog food and adding them to the oatmeal, the purpose being to have the mealworms eat protein. But maybe I’ll try the calcium powder. Is that something I can purchase at the drugstore?
On an additional note….I checked the Peterson style box this evening and it has the beginnings of a nest. Whether this will amount to anything. I don’t know. The male is still feeding the female when they settle down for their worms. So perhaps the mating has been delayed. Very weird after our exceptionally mild winter. Next year the rules will get posted early!
I was feeding a lot more too. But then I read somewhere that mealworms weren’t that nutritious unless you feed them dog food (no problem getting that in my house!) or dust them with calcium. So maybe that’s what I’ll do.
Just a little update. My bluebird pair appear regularly in the tree close to my front door, and wait for me to put out mealworms. There is no sign of a nest, so I have to assume they’ve built elsewhere. I can’t see any neighbors with boxes. Have any of you seen bluebirds nesting in tree cavities?
In the meantime, I ordered a new box built to Peterson specifications as I think the one I’ve been using is Peterson style but has a slightly smaller floor. (You can tell I’m feeling desperate 😉)
I’ve read that feeding fifteen mealworms per bird per day is about right. Is that what most of you are offering?
The TRES should be here soon. But until at least second BB nesting I’ll be living vicariously through all of you, so I’m looking forward to reading your posts.
I am in lower Fairfield County, CT and our male and female have been building a nest for close to 2 weeks. The recent weather (2 days of snow and wind) has slowed their progress even more. The nest appears to be nearly finished. They are around during the day and in and out of the box. There is another male with them…they do not seem to chase him away. Perhaps one of last years offspring? I am hopeful that the warming trend later this week will encourage some egg laying. They are ahead of last nearby two-three weeks. Hope that this helps.
Thanks to all of you who posted.
Susan,
I’m in Mewtown which should not be three weeks behind you. Unfortunately, I think this pair is nesting elsewhere but coming to me for food.
I realized after I posted here, that I had not removed the overhang I added last summer to shade the house. Could that have deterred the birds from using the box? (I have since taken the overhang off.). Although I wish the Blues were making their first nest with me, I’m happy to help their survival with twice daily feeding. We’ve had snow and ice two times in the last five days, so I’m glad my order of mealworms has arrived.
Looking forward to the arrival of the TRES and hopefully the blues for a second nesting.
