Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
They are really sweet. I didn’t know they nested in boxes. I have chickadees at my feeder in the winter, but I am actually pretty ignorant about their nesting habits.
Susan
PennsylvaniaThat’s great news, Dana. I live in Mechanicsburg, PA (just a few miles west of Harrisburg), and my bluebirds have also been very productive. Five babies in round #1, and currently five eggs in the house. My pair got a little bit of a late start because of some house competition between them and the tree swallows early in the spring. Good luck with your new brood.
Susan
PennsylvaniaGood Luck! Let us know how it goes. July 4 is a nightmare for my chihuahuas–lots of shivering and hiding. Hopefully your baby blues won’t have the same reaction!
Susan
PennsylvaniaWell, this box definitely has a larger base than a regular bluebird house. I deliberately got a TRES house with a larger base because I had read that they had more babies at a time. However, when the birds were competing over the houses, the bluebirds ended up taking over the TRES house. I’ll just have to wait and see :-)
Susan
PennsylvaniaThanks for the advice, Carol. I will certainly remember that in the future. This afternoon I saw mama, papa and one of their babies all getting meal worms together, so I figured I had an opening to check the nest. There are now 5 eggs. Mama spent a lot of time in the house this afternoon/evening. I am assuming that she is done laying. Has anyone ever had 6 eggs?
Susan
PennsylvaniaFive eggs today, and mama has spent most of her day in the house. She did come out to go to the bird bath for a drink. That’s how I managed to peek in and see the fifth egg. It is in the 90’s here today, so it’s no wonder she needed some air and a drink!
Susan
PennsylvaniaWell, she figured it out. To be honest, I am not sure if she stopped at 4 eggs or if she laid another this morning. I put the wren guard on at about 6:30 a.m. I was planning to give her some time to adjust and possibly lay another egg before I went poking around with my mirror. The last two days, she and papa have shown up at around 8 a.m., and she has had another egg in there by 9 a.m. I waited until after 8 o’clock, but she was in the box on the eggs. I guess that means she’s done laying eggs, but I’m still not sure if it’s 4 or 5.
Susan
PennsylvaniaI put a 1/4 tsp of Sevin 5% under the bird’s nest last evening. This morning, I went out to attach the wren guard. Boy, those mites are still relentless. How long will it take the Sevin to work?
Susan
PennsylvaniaI wish I could have just followed the shoe box plan. Unfortunately, my bluebird house (which was originally bought for the TRES) has a reverse gable on the front. I used heavy cardboard to cut the peak and left tabs on the front and sides. It sits about 3.5 inches out from the hole. I covered the cardboard in clear packing tape to protect from weather and used small screws to attach it to the house. I know I’m a little late. . .egg #4 appeared yesterday, but at least it is up. Now I just have to make sure that the bluebirds learn to work around it.
Susan
PennsylvaniaThey are very sweet. Four eggs now. I had to poke around their house a little bit this evening to put a little Sevin dust under the nest. The mites have been awful. I worry about putting chemicals in there, but I am hoping the benefits outweigh any risks to the babies. Mama blue sat on the corner of the spouting again and watched me. As soon as I left, she and papa took turns checking out the nest. I hope I didn’t freak them out too much.
Susan
PennsylvaniaThanks, Tammy. I appreciate all of the tips. I have been constructing my wren guard today (I have never used one in the past, but with all of the horror stories on the forum, I decided it was time), so I didn’t get out to get the DE anyway. I will get the Sevin and try that.
Susan
PennsylvaniaOkay. You’ve convinced me. I will try to get the DE and treat the box under the nest tomorrow. There are two eggs in there, is that alright? P.S. — I have a swimming pool, so I know the difference between pool DE and food DE. I WON’T get the pool kind. :-}
Susan
PennsylvaniaToday when I was cutting grass, I came around the corner of my house on the zero-turn mower and my little dogwood tree looked like it was decorated for Christmas. Mama and Papa blue were sitting in the tree, and all of the fledglings were right there. I wish I had my camera! It’s awesome.
Susan
Pennsylvania
