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I’m curious as to how accepting the Noel Guard is too. It’s supposed to be effective, but I’ve just heard that the birds aren’t too accepting of it. Keep us posted!
Yes, congrats on your bluebird nest & eggs. Don’t you just love it? I’ve got a pair with 6 eggs- hatching should be coming soon, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.
As far as dry mealworms, my bluebirds absolutely love them! I started supplying them when a pair nested in my yard last Spring & that same pair has been visiting ever since. I live in the south, so they fed on my dry mealworms all winter long. This is a great time to introduce them since you already have a pair nesting in your yard. The key is to put them in a location where the bluebirds will discover them.
Hope it works out!
Well, the rest of the streamers came down today on the sparrow spooker & the male is around. My niece said she actually saw him go into the house. I think he’s finally accepted it. Gin, I meant that hopefully the male realized the spooker wouldn’t harm him by now. I know that he’s wary of me, as he should be. However, the last two times I approached the box, I let the female know I was coming & didn’t think she was in there since she didn’t fly out. Both times,she just stayed there incubating her eggs (even when I opened the box). Thought that was a bit unusual…
Thanks again for the advice.
Nicole
Hi Missy- If your bluebirds do appear for a later nesting (or you get another pair), do you have a sparrow spooker to put up after 1st egg is laid? Since you have HOSPs around, you may want to go ahead & get one to be prepared (unless you already have one). Hope it works out for you!
Nicole
Thank you Cher & Gin. Truly appreciate your replies. I did put the sparrow spooker back up & am untying a new row of streamers each day. Tomorrow, I’ll let down the front row again, which will be the last. I am seeing the male around again, but tomorrow will be the true test. Surely, he knows by now that it won’t harm him. Late last spring, I got a new next door neighbor & she was feeding the seed with fillers that you get at the grocery store. Within a month, there were up to 100 HOSP’s in her yard & of course, crossing over into my yard & others. They took over my mealworm feeders & it just became a huge mess. Luckily, I spoke to her & she didn’t realize the negative impact she was causing, so we both agreed to stop feeding for several months. When she started feeding again, she agreed that she would go to Wild Birds Unlimited & select other things to feed. She is now feeding mealworms. For the most part, the HOSPs relocated, but with them now familiar with our location, I still see some around, but we are no longer infested with them. Our yards are very close together, so if the situation wouldn’t have been corrected, I wasn’t even going to put my 2 boxes up this year for fear of terrible problems. Again, so glad she worked with the bluebirds & the other little songbirds we so long to attract. Just didn’t want to go without the sparrow spooker if at all possible, so the male is just going to have to “man up.” I saw a little titmice on my porch today gathering nesting material, but don’t know where she was going with it. So cute. Thanks again!
Gin, I lived in Atlanta for 10 years (Buckhead area). You are so lucky to not have HOSPs. I don’t have house wrens, so that’s good.
Nicole
Thanks for your reply, Cher. I decided to take down the sparrow spooker today & he’s back up in the tree or on top of the box when she’s in it. I hate to go without the sparrow spooker, but he seems to be spooked himself. I realize that he won’t always be around during this time, but these two have been inseparable since I 1st saw them last Spring. He truly was ignoring her for 4 straight days. Do you think I should try to reintroduce the sparrow spooker? I could hang two streamers at a time per day until all six are hanging by tying others up, but I already did this when I noticed his hesitancy originally. Once all the strands were hanging, he disappeared. Again, I hate not to try & protect them from sparrows, but want him to be there to help her. Any ideas? Anybody? I’m all ears!
Nicole
PS- Cher, love the little bird cartoon caricatures. Too cute!
