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Babies!!! :) Grats on getting the HOSP, looks like I’ve got one on trying to claim a box again too. It is quite a way from the house and will be hard to keep an eye on, and in this heat I’d definitely have to keep eyes on every minute. I guess a day out on the front porch with the binoculars is in my future.
I love song sparrows. Mine seem to love water! They are often at the birdbath and one year even made a nest in a vine that was only a couple feet from the watering area. It’s nice to hear a story of a “good bird” getting the best of a HOSP. Hopefully, the beatdown will make the HOSP think twice and stay away.
Ok,yes! I saw those when I was researching and coming up with a game plan. After reading reviews, and considering costs (x14 boxes), I went with the wood guards. Fingers crossed they keep the raiding Jays out, if not I will move onto something else. Thanks for taking the time to show me which ones you use, I appreciate it.
She lost one batch of 5 fledglings to a female jay that sat on the nestbox as they fledged and grabbed them by the neck as the peered out to take flight and nipped off their heads.
Holy cow! and here I thought if the babies would get to a certain size they would be safe from them. It sounds like that jay was just killing them for no reason, wow.
I have lots of feeders, and lots of trees. My closest to the feeders/mature maple tree is maybe 6 feet. It is a very successful box, sometimes gets blues sometimes TRES. It was paired with another box that I moved to a more open area this season. The mulberry tree had grown over the years and seemed to crowding in on that box a little to much.
Yes, I would remove the nest. If the nest is solid, and not soiled or full of bugs, I will remove it carefully from the box and put it in a gallon ziplock bag. That way I have a back up nest if there is some type of emergency and I need to change out a nest.
I get as attached to trees as I do to the birds. I hope your oak survives the lightning strike.
Julie, do you use the wood guards that extend the hole out an inch (or so), or some other type of guard? My husband did say he saw a male bluebird go into a box with they new guard installed, so that makes me feel better. I’m hoping they accept the change to the boxes okay.
Welcome to the forum Therese! How disappointing that your eggs did not hatch. It does sound like it is in a busy spot. I don’t have any experience with raising bluebirds in a spot that gets human traffic like that. Maybe someone else here can advise you on that front. Crossing my fingers that you get another nesting.
Before I had the internet, we were a little late in getting that out here. My son at the time was kindergarten aged lol. He is 24 now!
I actually saw the bluejay on one of the nestboxes so I got to see how they did it. It perched on the roof, being divebombed by TRES didn’t phase it. It hopped down to the hole, gripping onto the bottom of the hole itself. Then it was able to reach in there to it’s shoulders. I did scare that one off before it made off with more TRES babies. It had already robbed 2 out of the nest previously. So, I’m hoping that adding the wood hole extender to the outside will work. I think with that extra inch they will not be able to reach in far enough into the box to grab the babies. I pray that it works. The jay (s?) took a heavy toll on the the trail this year, probably my worst year ever so far. Most boxes they hit they left 1 or 2 babies, but one TRES box had all six babies missing, and another TRES box all 4.
So, I’m really hoping for 2nd broods (3rd brood for one pair) from my blues. Only 9 babies have fledged so far between all 4 nesting pairs. I want to see them nest in the boxes with the guard added, so that I know they will accept those boxes. It will probably be a week before I will see any new nesting activity, so fingers crossed.
Carol I’m in north central Ohio. The last 2 TRES babies, and last 2 BB babies did fledge this morning, so all my boxes are now empty. I went around and cleaned, added a light coat of Vaseline to the inside roofs, and put the new guards on the two boxes that fledged. I’m hoping the blues will start another nesting. I had 4 pairs of blues, and 5 TRES nests this year. Very low number on the TRES this season, very unusual. Typically, I have 4-5 blues, and about 8 TRES. It will be interesting to see if the bluebirds choose the boxes that I’ve added the guard on to re nest in, or if they change boxes and go for the ones I can’t refit with the guard.
I also had a barnswallow nest on the front porch. They nested there for the first time last season and successfully raised 4 babies. It was awesome to get a front row seat watching them from in the house. Unfortunately, after their 4 eggs hatched this year they fell victim to the murderous blue jay. It was one of the heartache moments for sure. I actually saw the jay at the nest, but it was too late. I’ve been racking my brain on trying to figure a way to protect that nest, but I just can’t see a way, not against avian predation anyway.
The stovepipe baffle is the way to go! We have oodles of coons here (not unusual to look out at night and see a dozen of them after the females have their babies), I would not have any successful nestings if I did not have pole mounted boxes with stovepipe baffles.
When I began hosting bluebirds, I made every flipping mistake I could have made. Now this is back before the internet, so I get a pass on some of it lol. I had the boxes mounted on trees, I had no clue HOSP were despicable murderous (insert cuss word here), and no idea that coons raided boxes. When I finally got internet, remember dial up? lol I started reading and learning, I believe it was mostly on the old forums here. Unfortunately, I did not follow the advice right away and started on my path of learning the hard way. I only had 2 boxes at the time, but I had bluebirds in them. Right up until coons raided both boxes one night. So, off the trees and onto the poles. Added grease to them just like you tried. Messy stuff, and in the end not very effective, coons struck again. So, I learned to make the baffles. Then all the lessons about HOSP. Bought a repeater trap and a van ert. Got them under control. Took years to get a handle on them. Then got to learn about all the little buggies boxes can get, like blowfly and mites, and feather lice. Oh, and wrens, those are always “fun”. THIS year, 25+ years in, I got to learn about blue jays raiding the boxes and making off with the babies. I never had a problem with that in all my years. So, I’ve been putting kettle moiraine guards (wood blocks to extend the hole out and inch) on all my boxes. I have 4 of the 14 that can’t be fitted with them that I will have to replace before next season.
So, just remember you aren’t alone. Most of us have at some time lost eggs,babies,and adults and have felt all the heartache you are feeling now. Just learn from it, and if there is something you can adjust to help prevent it from happening in the future get to it. In the end we can only do so much, and it is ultimately in God’s hands.
Nice pictures David! Goldfinches vary in numbers here, sometimes I have a few, sometimes 30. Just depends on the time of year, right now they are off nesting and I just have a couple pairs.
Carol, that is frustrating about the chickens. We had some way back when and I loved watching them, but they really can do a number on flowers beds and gardens. I had no clue about that back then, another lesson I learned the hard way. ;)
It is so hot here again today, I’m glad most of my boxes (maybe all, I haven’t checked today) have fledged. I’ve been keeping busy running outside and refilling the birdbath and water dishes – that has been a popular spot in this heat.
They could also be filling up on berries. I know my serviceberries have been picked clean, and now the mulberry tree is ripening and full of all kinds of birds at the moment. Black raspberries are starting to ripen as well. I know my blues love berries, I usually pick a handful and throw them into the bluebird feeder with the mealies, that way they have a few “free ones” that they don’t have to fight the mockingbirds for.
Van Ert would be my first inductee into the bluebirders hall of fame if it existed. Can you imagine just how many bluebirds and TRES have been saved over all these years because of his little trap? He is a hero in my eyes.
Phillyblues, keep up the not so fun work of trying to get the HOSP numbers down. I remember when I had so many around it seemed like an impossible task. This year (knock on wood), I’ve had to trap only two. One in the Spring, and one just yesterday. I also watch the boxes, see which ones a male has claimed (CHEEP CHEEP CHEEP CHEEP ugh) then set the trap and watch.
Hello everyone! I was a member of the old forum ages ago, and I learned a lot of what I know about hosting bluebirds from you all way back when. I live in north central Ohio and have had a trail of 14 nest boxes on my property for about 25 years now. (ok saying that just made me feel old! lol) I recently purchased the BBF1 mealworm feeder and saw that it was designed by you guys, and it got me looking up the bluebird nut site again. I had trouble registering for the forum, so thank you Cher for helping me get back on board here.
