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I haven’t seen the Mama or babies for about four days. I hope Rich is right and they are just in hiding. It is dreadfully hot here–still in a heat wave. I also worry about crows. We have corn fields surrounding our property, and there are lots of crows around. I hope she comes back soon!
Susan
PennsylvaniaThanks for the advice. I will definitely be removing the birdhouse from the fence. I’m torn about erecting a new bluebird house on a pole in the yard because my husband and I may be relocating over the next year. You never know what type of people are going to buy your house, and I am afraid it could be someone who doesn’t maintain the birdhouse properly. Would it be likely for Mama Blue to find a new mate and return this late in the season?
Susan
PennsylvaniaI guess I will stop putting worms out for now. They are just dying out there, and I haven’t seen the Mama or babies since Friday. I will keep watching for her and put more out when she returns.
Susan
PennsylvaniaWell, you were right about that. I put out the usual amount of worms, but Mama Blue never showed. Nothing out there but a bunch of charred worms (98 degrees here today). I walked up to the pine trees where I think she is hiding out, but I couldn’t find her or the babies. I will put more worms out this evening when the sun drops a bit. It’s 7 p.m. here and still 92 degrees. Yeesh. I’ll just have to see if she returns tonight.
Susan
PennsylvaniaThanks, Carol. I certainly appreciate all of your experience and advice! Do you think that 50 worms in the a.m. and 50 in the p.m. is too much? There is going to be a record breaking heat wave here for the next 4-5 days. Temperatures in the high nineties and heat indices well over 100. I thought that Mama Blue could use the worms since she is still working on her own in this terrible heat! I put her worms out this evening in the usual spot about 20 feet from the birdhouse and called her. She came and got the worms in no time!
Susan
PennsylvaniaThe babies have fledged! I went out with my dogs this morning and saw Mama Blue. When I approached the birdhouse to untangle some of the streamers on the sparrow spooker, she didn’t even care! She has been dive-bombing me for the past four days if I get within 15 feet of that house. Anyway, that was my first clue. Then, I put out her mealworms and noticed that she was gathering them and taking them to a grove of pine trees that sit about 100 feet from the birdhouse. I took a stroll up there to see if I could spot the babies, and she started chirping loudly and hovering over my head. I guessed that the babies were up there somewhere, so I checked the birdhouse. The nest is clean as a whistle!
Thanks to everyone who offered so much advice and moral support throughout this ordeal. I was so devastated to find the Papa Blue gone, it is such a relief to know that the babies are off and running.
Thanks again!
SusanSusan
PennsylvaniaI will definitely continue feeding Mama Blue and her babies for a few months. Do you think I should take the birdhouse off of my fence after this group leaves? I am assuming that the bluebirds go south in the winter months??? I live in south central Pennsylvania.
Do the house sparrows still pose a threat to the babies AFTER they have left the birdhouse?
Thank you very much!
Susan
PennsylvaniaHow long after the babies leave the nest do you keep giving live mealworms? I never fed the bluebirds before Daddy Blue died. I really just wanted to do anything I could to help Mama Blue and her babies. I haven’t been using a “permanent” bird feeder for Mama Blue. I put the 50 worms in a small cup (the kind that hangs inside a birdcage), I hang it on a 3 ft. PVC fence that encloses my “dog yard,” and Mama Blue comes right down and empties it out. She eats some of the worms and takes the rest to the birdhouse. Because I didn’t know anything about proper bluebird care, I hanged the bluebird house 20 ft. off of my deck on a 6 ft. high privacy fence that encloses my swimming pool. When I gave her the worms today, I moved the feeder a few feet farther away from the birdhouse. I figured that I could just move it a few feet each time I feed her.
I have been spotting what I believe to be female house sparrows around the bluebird house. The sparrow spooker has helped so far, but the sparrows are really stressing Mama Blue. I saw one hovering near the entrance of the birdhouse yesterday and I scared it away and put extra streamers on the sparrow spooker. Do you think Mama Blue will be able to keep them out on her own?
I think I will just take the birdhouse down after the babies fledge. I doubt that the Mama would build another nest here this year anyway since the Daddy Blue died.
Susan
PennsylvaniaHi Carol: The worms I bought came right from Petsmart. I just asked for mealworms, and these are the ones they gave me. I only specified that I did not want “Superworms.” The Mama is definitely sharing the worms with the babies. Right now, the feeder is only about 3 feet away from the birdhouse. I only give her the worms when I have the time to sit and watch for her to empty the feeder. I don’t want any other birds coming to the feeder. Do I need to move it farther away if I am monitoring her and only leaving her alone when the feeder is empty? Right now, I have a lot of flexibility to monitor her because I am a school teacher, and I am off for the summer. Thankfully, these babies will fledge before I have to go back to school in the middle of August. I am going to need advice on how to help the fledglings once they take off–assuming they stick around :)
Susan
PennsylvaniaThings have been going well. I put 50 worms out in the a.m. and 50 in the p.m. (They are about 3/4-1 inch in length). Mama has them gone in no time. I have been dusting them with calcium powder too. Fingers crossed!
Susan
PennsylvaniaWell, I moved the worms closer to the birdhouse and Mama has found them! So far, I have put out about 25 worms and they disappear as fast and I put them out. I am guessing that I do this in the a.m. and p.m. (maybe 50 worms for each feeding?)
My birdhouse is mounted on a 6 foot privacy fence that goes around my swimming pool. I have since read that the house should be on a slippery pole. Unfortunately, I did not know this until my couple moved in and I started reading about bluebirds. Other than Papa dying, it has been very successful. I have never seen a snake or a squirrel in my back yard, and I have lived here for 23 years. House sparrows are my biggest concern. The fence keeps the birdhouse shaded for most of the day. The front of the birdhouse faces NE. In the a.m. hours, it does get sun. As it sits, the birdhouse is on the outside of the pool fence. I have a pool umbrella on a table in the same corner. Since the birdhouse is well ventilated at the top where the roof hangs over, I was thinking I could shade the house with the pool umbrella (from the inside of the fence) when it gets dreadfully hot over the next two weeks. I believe that the babies are about 5-6 days old.
Thanks for the input. I am so glad that I can help Mama Blue out with the feedings!
Susan
PennsylvaniaHi Carol: Thank you very much for the tips. I will keep plugging away. This Mama is a real trooper–taking care of her little ones all day in this terrible heat. One of her babies from the first brood has been splashing in the bird bath all day and hanging close to the house. Very cute. I’ll let you know when she finally gets the mealworms!
Susan
PennsylvaniaStill no luck with the mealworms. It is so painfully hot here that I can’t keep them alive out there for more than an hour at most. I was only able to 150 worms at the Petco (that’s all they had) and Petsmart is sold out. I am trying to ration the worms until she finds them, I hate to put them all out and have them just die out there. I am planning to wait until the sun drops, and then I will put out another batch. Maybe they will stay alive longer when they are not baking in the 95 degree sun!
Susan
PennsylvaniaI peeked in the side of the birdhouse this afternoon. I will have to look again later, but I know there are at least three babies. It might be just three, but one or two could have been curled up in there. Only one raised his head up to eat, so it was hard to tell. I quickly closed it back up. Honestly, I was devastated when I had to bury Papa Blue yesterday, and I am trying to save the babies without getting majorly attached.
Susan
PennsylvaniaThe mealworms have been set out for Mama Blue for about 3 hours. She has made many trips to the birdhouse, sat on a nearby fence and overlooked the container, but has made no attempt to approach it. It is about 15 ft. from the entrance of the birdhouse. It is so dreadfully hot here today (high 90’s with a heat index over 100) I’m not sure the mealworms will stay alive much longer. I checked on them recently and some were still moving. To be honest, I am not sure how many babies are in the house. I peeked in the hole on the day that I found the Papa dead. I saw two babies at that time, but I did not actually open the side of the house to count. Mama blue is ALWAYS watching. When I approached the house yesterday to install the sparrow spooker, she sat on the spouting of my house and chirped at me. She obviously didn’t like me messing around the house–that is why I have hesitated to open it up. When is the best time of day to do that, maybe dusk?
Susan
Pennsylvania
