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Bluebird Behavior (Part 1)Also see Aggression and Anting and Emotions Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 18:41:07 EDT Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2001 13:59:16 EST Pair of beautiful Eastern bluebirds checking out one of my boxes this
morning! It being my second year of bluebirding I now know that it will be a 1. As I understand it the male shows his potential mate the nesting site(s)
he has found and then she makes the final choice. How does she indicate to him
that she likes it or not? Does she just fly off if it does not meet with her
approval? Is there some display behavior that indicates that she is I realize there may be no *definite* answer to this but I am hoping that some of you with so much experience of watching the birds will have seen something noteworthy in the behavior that may go some way to shedding light on the question. I'd like to see if I can tell when a box has been chosen. 2. Is it known whether they ( or any other birds for that matter ) ever interbreed with their siblings? Thanks Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2001 21:17:02 -0600 Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas No I haven't checked all of my boxes yet but Jack Finch reported that a
school teacher in Bailey North Carolina has an Eastern Bluebird sitting on Females choosing nest site: I have seen the females often check out the site
the male is singing about only to see her fly off with the male quickly inbreeding: Every combination possible of inbreeding has been recorded among Eastern Bluebirds. The color brochure that NABS used with the picture of Larry Zeleny's on the front called Little Brother & Little Sister were the orphaned bluebirds he raised one year and banded. The following spring they mated together and raised off spring. This in not very common but does happen more in areas with small populations of bluebirds. Harry Krueger banding Eastern Bluebirds in East Texas and trapping all adults each nesting found very few instances of inbreeding but he was working with a very large population of bluebirds. KK Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 14:38:53 -0700 Thought you might be interested in an event I was privileged to witness today. Watched two female Western bluebirds fighting (appeared to be to the death) over a male who was claiming a nestbox. These two "ladies" took each other to the ground, off and on, for some 15 minutes, rolling and tumbling like two wrestlers. They also clashed while airborne and fell back to the ground. Finally the one female, most likely the younger of the two, relented and flew off. The victor and the male began lovemaking and preparing for their family. A new experience for me. I've seen many fights between males over territory,
but never two females fighting over territory or a male.. Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 20:23:38 -0500 (EST) Hi Erv and all, Several years ago I witnessed two female Eastern bluebirds much like you described. i took movies of this battle and was able to approach to about 25 ft. of them. The clutched each other and rolled on the ground. After some time the male flew down right onto them and they broke it up. One left the area and the other stayed. I always thought that males did most of the fighting for territory. guess it depends on which there are most of. Now is the time of year for these things to happen if conditions exist. Joe Huber Venice Fl Charter member NABS, Charter member OBS, Life member OBS Joe Huber http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/HOUSESPARROWCONTROL http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/RoostingBluebirds Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 18:46:39 -0800 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. I've only seen one bluebird fight-to-the-ground. It was two female westerns fighting over a male in 1998. My nestboxes hang in trees and that's where I heard the fluttering commotion starting before the two females came out in the open for the air-fight-to-the-ground sequence. It only lasted a few minutes. The male just sat from a fence watching the event until the victor flew over and sat by his side. This year at that same site, there are two amicable females with a single male . . . could be relatives because their nest isn't being built. Ervin Davis wrote: Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2001 10:23:55 -0400 As I watch the action at the Antietam Nest Cam site, I'm curious - does the
female deliberately re-position the eggs as she broods? Or does it happen Lynn Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2001 10:36:22 -0400 Hi Lynn, The answer I got was that not only does the parent keep the eggs warm, but also her presence helps cool and maintain a more even temeperature. In addition, the repositioning of the eggs, helps to keep the chick's growth stimulated and from sticking to the shell. It makes sense to me and being able to watch this first hand is incredible. I was also interested at how often she moves around and is in an out of the nest box fairly often. Joyce, central Virginia Lynn Ward wrote: As I watch the action at the Antietam Nest Cam site, I'm curious - does the Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2001 10:06:49 -0600 As I watch the action at the Antietam Nest Cam site, I'm curious - does the Yes, she does re-position the eggs as she broods. This is done instinctively. When incubating chicken eggs here at home several years ago, I followed the instructions that accompanied the Incubator. These instructions informed me that the eggs needed to be turned several times a day, every day, so the embryos would not fuse to one side of the shell membrane. With chicken eggs, ideally, the directions I was following suggested I turn them 4 times a day, every 6 hours. I marked the eggs in pencil with an "x" on one side, and "o" on the opposite in order to keep track of this process. I then charted the turning process on paper to keep track of my incubation days and times. I hope this answers your question. Keith is the chicken expert............perhaps he'll have more to share regarding the "why's and wherefore's"!!! Ann Wick Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2001 17:31:03 -0400 ---------- Original Message ---------------------------------- Hi All: In answer to your question re: egg movement & position of brooding female--I remember seeing female last year turn the eggs gently w/her beak! She does indeed change position & frequently turns eggs to allow membrane to remain free from shell. This process is so interesting to watch!! This a.m. I met Fawzi and Kevin Krider & family (sp?) saw female on nest, very contented. Wait till hatching time -- that's when you will see her munching on shells, at least that's what she did last year! Betty Nichols, Middletown, MD Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2001 20:30:50 -0700 Birds do deliberately turn their eggs so that they are incubated evenly. Have you ever seen the brood spot on the breast of the female? It is an area devoid of feathers so that the blood vessels just below the skin are exposed. This area is pressed in turn against each egg so the female keeps turning the eggs to reposition them so she can touch each with this brood spot. I'm sure that there is more scientific data available about this phenomenon but this is the jist of it! Judy Mellin As I watch the action at the Antietam Nest Cam site, I'm curious - does the Date: Sun, 6 May 2001 20:32:18 -0400 I watched the pair of Eastern Bluebirds that are nesting in my front yard this morning, and saw an interesting behavior. Now, most (all?) birds scratch their heads with a foot now and then. Have any of you noticed HOW they accomplish this? There are two methods they use, the leg either goes in front of the wing or behind the wing. The Eastern Bluebird I watched dropped her wing and her leg went behind it to scratch! I'd be interested to know how Western and Mountain Bluebirds scratch their heads. Have any of you observed this behavior? Brenda The Nature Club of Central New York
Date: Sun, 20 May 2001 12:34:36 -0700 (PDT) Dear People on the list...Today I observed some EABL territorial behavior that I hadn't seen. Brief backgound. As I've mentioned before, I haven't any EABL nesting so far this season. (Only Chickadees & TUTI)..A box that I put up for a neighbor (a little better location than my yard), did get the nesting EABL, & they fledged fine 11 days ago. The neighbor was thrilled, & actually so was I. (Their small child brought the nest to his school to show his class.) These EABL come to my yard for water, food, & other goodies continuously throughout the day & everyday in addition to have been showing interest in my boxes. I have 4 up for them. OK, now the HOWR have invaded us & are trying to claim as many of these 4 boxes as they can with sticks. The EABL has apparently started a nest in the side box, but the HOWR keeps putting in his sticks over this EABL nest. I've gently taken the sticks out probably over 12-15 times the last couple days..trying not to mess up what the EABL has done with her nest. Ok, my stradegy now is to encourage the HOWR to take the front box which is located closer to trees. Now he's doing that, & I think leaving the side box alone. OK, but here is generally what I observed today which I think is very interesting. Let me say that in the past, I had never seen the EABL chase the HOWR away from any box. (And I don't recall ever hearing anyone on this list ever mentioning it.)..I couldn't understand why not, as I've seen the EABL readily chase away, Chickadees, Titmouse, Nuthatches, Woodpeckers, squirrels, etc. (Some people could probably name some more I'm sure.) Anyway, I saw the HOWR enter my back EABL box, & for the 1st time, I saw the male EABL immediately fly to that box & try to evict the HOWR who wouldn't come out. After about 5 min. the EABL went inside & evicted the HOWR. This was quite satisfying to me, but remember this isn't the box with the starting EABL nest in it. So which one the EABL finally choose, if any at all remains a complete mystery to me at this moment. They also haven't started a renesting in that neighbor's box either. Let me add, that back at the end of March, I literally saw a male EABL fight over 1 of my boxes with another male almost to the death while his female stood by & watched, but the winner didn't nest in any of the boxes...If anyone has seen interesting bird behavior, by all means, tell me...Thanks....Horace in NC. ===== Date: Wed, 23 May 2001 09:35:22 -0400 Hello everyone! As mentioned earlier, a possum got all of my BB eggs on May 16th. I put up a new box on May 18th. About 10 minutes after installation, both male and female were hopping all around the box. I have seen them about every other day, usually in the afternoon hopping around the box. The male pokes his head in and then perches on top of the box. The female has gone inside a couple of times. This usually lasts about 15 minutes and then I don't see them again till the next day. Just what are they doing and why don't they go ahead and start again? Should I assume that it is the same pair that had their nest destroyed? Thanks for any info. -Laura
Date: Wed, 23 May 2001 09:03:32 -0500 Hi Laura, that's just what my pair of BB's did when their box was destroyed. After about a week, I saw claim straws in it. Then another week went by and there was a full nest. It now has five BB eggs that should hatch in about a week. So just keep watching and I bet you will have success. Dottie, Brown County, Indiana -----Original Message----- From: Laura Agnew agnel"at"ils.unc.edu ... Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 17:25:42 -0400 Dear All: Thurs. 5/24 I responded to call for help from owner of box w/6 nestlings, female found in yard, mortally injured when she hit sliding glass door. Father Bluebird feeding nestlings about 12 days old. I immediately increased food supply w/mealworms. Father faithfully fed nestlings Friday, has taken very few mealies today and has not been seen at box. I visited box, verified age at ABOUT 14 days, examined one nestling, appears healthy, and NO begging for food by nestlings. The entire brood remains quite still (as trained) -- they do not appear hungry at all. The owners of the box (newbies) are worried father Bluebird has abandoned nestlings - I feel he has begun to withhold feeding-- we should watch his behavior tomorrow. They have tail feathers and primary feathers apparently sufficient to fly. Since the box had not been closely monitored prior to this tragedy, it is difficult to come to any solid decision regarding age. Question: Is it possible the father Bluebird has abandoned the nestlings or is it possible he is withholding food? I do not want to interfere unless absolutely necessary. PLEASE give me some feedback on this situation. Betty Nichols, Middletown, MD Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 19:47:14 -0400 Dear All: I have revisited Peterson Box containing the 6 nestlings; according to owners, father bluebird has not been there to feed them since 7a.m.. The nestlings appear o.k., not begging, if father bluebird is not there at Sun. a.m. visit, have rec'd approval from local licensed rehabber to release the nestlings to her. Owners agree. There is no possibility of "fostering" these nestlings as I am not positive of their age and in this area, parents are now just beginning second nestings so chances of locating matching age adoptive siblings are slim to none. Will keep you posted on outcome. Betty Nichols, Middletown, MD Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 19:50:35 -0400 (EDT) Hello Betty, If the male Bluebird is sill sen in the area things should be ok. Tomorrow he should make a move on the net box to either fed or entice the chicks out. There would have to be a reason for he male to abandon and I see none. Tomorrow may be fledge day. Joe Huber, Venice, F. Charter member NABS, Charter member OBS, Life member OBS Joe Huber http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/HOUSESPARROWCONTROL http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/RoostingBluebirds Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 17:37:32 -0700 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. Betty, good for you and for helping the single parent with helpings of mealworms. I always get a few sites each year with a single parent on my trail which I supplement with mealworms. If single parents are around the nestbox, in my experience, they always feed the nestlings. My advice would be to lay down the mealworms, stand off a few paces, watch to see if the dad feeds the nestlings. If so, listen to the urgency of the cheeps coming from the box. In my experience, starving chicks cheep non-stop until they run out of energy, start turning cold, and have listless eyes. Well-fed chicks at 12+ days should be warm, well-feathered, alert, possibly crouching in the nest or content/warm/sleeping. In fact, I just returned from a site with a single dad with a nestbox of five which lost their mom about 10 days ago. The chicks were starving. As I approached for the 10-day check/banding, I could hear a choir of non-stop urgent broken-record cheeping chicks. The site was obviously in severe distress and I decided *not* to take the hanging box down. Instead, I put down a good handful of mealworms and the chicks were fed, and fed and fed by a great dad. I stopped by again that day and the urgency was subsiding but still constant. By the next day, the box was normal, quiet on approach until the male started the feeding routine. They are scheduled to fledge tomorrow and I will continue the mealworm deliveries for the next week. There are a couple of people on this List that claim single parents can feed a clutch by themselves with no problems. On my trail, without mealworms, a single parent can fledge two, maybe three. At another site, two females are around, no male since the hatch. It seemed only one of the females was feeding the nestbox. The females would always eat mealworms first, then a female would take some to the nestbox. One of their five chicks starved so I took out two (which my experience shows would starve) and left the female(s) with two. Those remaining two are doing just fine with the female(s) as of yesterday. The other two were fostered. That story will be on a separate post entitled "Box Depth" because I feel the hole-to-floor drop needs more attention. Elizabeth Nichols wrote: Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 18:11:06 -0700 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. PS: Last year I found a dead female on a brood with a male around. I assumed the male was the single dad (which didn't feed the babies). But he was the male of a new pair that wanted the failed nestbox! Date: Sun, 27 May 2001 08:23:21 -0500 Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas Bluebirds grow at a tremendous rate when they are first born. Each day for them is like an entire year for a human growth wise. They are cold blooded until about day 9 as they cannot waste food for hot or cold temperature regulation of their bodies. Birds waste MORE energy trying to stay cool when temperatures are near 100*F than trying to keep warm in 50*F weather. As these birds complete most of their growth at about day 13 they are now actually heavier than their parents. At this stage they now have fat reserves and very poor muscle tone. Just as human teenagers have growth spurts and require more food so goes it with the birds. They will now slowly draw off of this supply of fat and convert it to muscle development in preparation of their first flight and no longer need as much food from the adults. As the birds get closer to flying age they do not need as much food and parent birds often are seen near the nestbox with an insect in their beak that the young refuse to eat. I believe this is a myth about the parents "with holding" food from an individual bird. What many have observed in the past is very similar to a person taking a troop of uniformed boy scouts into a Dairy Queen for an ice cream cone. At a distance it will look like the scout leader is with holding food as the first scout gobbles down the cone and continues jumping and running around begging for more, very often staying at the front of the line. But if you watch very closely you will see the leader feeding each one a single helping. Those who have marked their young birds have observed adults trying to with hold food from a young bird "hogging" the only entrance hole and the adult is actually trying to force it's way into the nestbox or waiting for the one to move so that it can distribute food to the other youngsters. Even though we cannot discern the difference between 46 young bluebirds does not mean the adults don't know one from the other. By using a video camera you will see that often when the adult shows up at the entrance, plugged with a young bird that this bird is cheeping and not begging for food. I have watched the adult repeatedly try feeding one of these cheeping youngsters even placing the insect in the young birds open mouth only to fly or hover in front of the box seemingly "with holding" the food when in reality this hole hogging bird refuses to move or eat. These older birds often will close their beak just as the insect is offered! When hand raising baby birds as the babies got old enough to discern the different foods I was bringing they would often totally refuse to eat a certain species of insect that only days before they seemed to enjoy. Ever have your child refuse a vegetable or meat while it's sibling was begging for it? How often have you seen parents force a spoonful of veggies into the mouth of an infant? There is nothing more frustrating than to have just spent 15 minutes trying to catch an insect for five starving young birds and then have each one of them refuse to eat the insect! As soon as you take the insect away and move your hand near them they all scream and quiver as if they were starved. THIS is what you are seeing at the nest box and not a case of the adults with holding food! This is purely a case of a "teenager" rebelling and refusing to eat his veggies and holding out for the ice cream! If you watch very closely most often you will see the adult end up eating this insect and going back to the field for a better choice in insects. Ever notice how many insects are left in the nest the last few days! The young birds either are refusing to eat them or will spit them out. Everyone on this list should hand raise at least one nest of either Starling or House Sparrow babies this summer and you will learn an awful lot! It is cheating to use store bought food and you must catch all of your own insects. Many times people will call and say their birds are refusing to feed the young birds as it has been hours since they have seen an adult at the nest. Adult birds begin feeding before sunrise. I have seen bluebirds feeding their young at night from insects gathered at a security light. I have seen them stuff the young before the sun ever came up and never went to the box until the afternoon! If a nest of 12 day old young birds are starving they will feed from your fingers if you stand to the side of the nestbox and hold an insect to the entrance hole. I would whistle, cheep or squeak and this will trigger the young to come to the hole. You will have to hit the open mouth with an insect you killed and tenderized or use meal worms. If they do not come to the hole then they were probably well fed long before you rolled out of bed. The more we observe and learn about the birds the more we should realize how little we actually know about ANY of these birds. KK Date: Sun, 27 May 2001 21:14:42 -0400 Hi All: Since the male Bluebird had not returned today by mid-morning, with the gratitude of the owners of the box, I transported 5 chirping openmouthed 13 day old nestlings to the Rehabilitator. Originally, there were 6 eggs, 5 hatched, no deaths. Their nest was soiled w/feces, not worth sending to Terry Whitworth. The Rehabber noted the nestlings were somewhat dehydrated and weighed them before placing in their snuggly box in incubator. Altho the owners of the bluebirdbox are newbies, they are quick learners and anxious to know all about being landlords. I am donating Dorene Scriven's Bluebird Trails to them together with other miscellaneous data. These are the kind of people we need to enhance this cavity nester business. Thank you, one and all for your kind support and guidance. Will let you know when the Rehabber returns the nestlings to us for release. Betty Nichols, Middletown, Maryland Date: Sat, 2 Jun 2001 16:02:55 -0400 This is my 2nd season of trail-monitoring. As I walked my trail yesterday, I noticed that one of my well-established boxes (6 hatchlings) had fledged that day, & the original nest remained inside. I also noticed that 2 male adult bluebirds were fighting with each other in close proximity to the female. I set out the mealy worms & watched this for awhile. The female went about her business of eating & bringing worms to the hatchlings who I presumed to be in a nearby tree (I could not see them), while the males continued to duke it out. They fought on top of the box, at the feeder, & they fought constantly. I watched this for 5 minutes before my dog got too impatient with me & demanded that we continue our trail walk. Why would a male challenge an established nest like this? Could this be an old rivalry Robin Kolberg Date: Wed, 06 Jun 2001 09:11:26 -0400 My blues brought their babies around the house the past 4-5 days, but morning and evening yesterday and this morning when I put my mealies out - I've only seen daddy - mama and the babies are no where in site and mama doesn't come when I whistle, do you know if this is normal for them? Daddy's been sitting on the house, wires, etc. calling out, but no one comes. He acts like he's courting all over again, but why would mama leave with the babies? Thanks! Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2001 09:52:48 -0400 ---------- Original Message ---------------------------------- Hi Barb: Cheer up, Mama Bluebird & fledglings are probably in a more protected area where she is teaching them to find their own food. It is highly unlikely she would abandon a convenient food source. She will no doubt return & start building second nest and Daddy Blue will resume majority of care. Let us know when she returns. Betty Nichols, Middletown, MD My blues brought their babies around the house the past 4-5 days, but ... Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2001 13:33:44 -0400 (EDT) Hello Barb and all, The young are fresh out of the nest and require the attention of adult Bluebirds to keep them in cover and to feed them. When you see the male near nest boxes it may be another male and not the one from the nest that just fledged. It will turn out ok as soon as the original pair decide to re-nest. When you whistle for Bluebirds when putting out meal worms they may be to far away to hear you, or are not interested at that time. Joe Huber Venice, Fl. Charter member NABS, Charter member OBS, Life member OBS Joe Huber http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/HOUSESPARROWCONTROL http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/RoostingBluebirds Date: Wed, 06 Jun 2001 19:52:05 -0500 after my babies fledged about 2 weeks after I would just see Daddy & Mama was no where to be found, but the past few days I have seen Mama, Daddy & all 3 babies! So what yours are doing sounds normal to me...nothing to worry about. Also after the 2 weeks I have seen Daddy courting a little w/Mama. One instance he fed her a mealie at the feeder it was so adorable. Joleen in Indiana Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2001 14:55:02 -0400 Our bluebird pair built two complete nests 15 feet apart, but only used one. They did not use the second one, which was perfectly complete and absolutely clean. I cleared out both boxes when the used one was fledged. Maybe I cleaned out the unused one needlessly, but the pair was nowhhere to be seen at the time, although I did hear the male once while I was cleaning, but did not see him. VMS "Fawzi P. Emad" wrote: Hi Ann, Malinda and all. What I find amazing and new (to my knowledge) is ...
Date: Wed, 13 Jun 2001 23:38:50 -0500 Okay members, I have a situation I would like to describe and then ask you why this is happening. On the morning of Friday, June 1st I found a bunch of feathers from the male
EAstern BLuebird that had been part of a couple nesting in my yard. The now She hung tough incubating and protecting the nest -- even taking on the male of another couple that came to inspect other nestboxes in our yard the evening of June 2nd. The intruding couple left. The female began eating supplied mealworms, which she had previously snacked on periodically, but had not really taken to eating on a regular basis. On the morning of Friday, June 8th, I caught my female and a new male in each of two nestboxes. I figured it was a tough first date. He skedaddled. On Sunday afternoon, June 10th, the female and a new male (same one as on the 2nd, or 8th?) were checking out all the boxes in the yard. After much chirping and house hunting together, the female would leave and fly back into the nestbox with her five eggs. The male usually stood atop her nestbox. When she came out, they'd check nest boxes again, sit around or he would go inside to see the eggs. This male is still here. He periodically feeds the female tiny insects. Tonight he flew at a roving HOuse SParrow... so is protecting the nestbox. Finally, my questions: Why is this male protecting this female and her five eggs? Is he hoping for a crack at nesting when this family is raised? Does this mean she is the only single female in the whole wide neighborhood and so is his only hope for a successful nesting this season? Wouldn't he just keep roving until he found a really single, unattached female? And finally, is there any chance this is the original male, apparently fully recuperated? (I originally thought I found only right wing feathers, but I actually found about 7 - 9 feathers from both wings, plus some of those short down-like upper-back feathers. I never found chunks of skin with these feathers... when you know the bird is a goner. Could he have recovered from a loss of this many feathers in this short time frame: June 1 to June 10?) Sorry this is so long, but I've never had this happen before and am really curious as to why it is happening! Thanks in advance for your ideas. Molly Jo Miller Date: Thu, 14 Jun 2001 09:10:18 -0400 (EDT) Hi Molly Jo, There is no way to determine that either of these Bluebirds are
the same ones that began the nesting in your boxes. Is the female still
incubating those original eggs? There is no way an injured male could recover
this soon. Feathers generally molt in fall and new ones couldn't be re- grown
already. Charter member NABS, Charter member OBS, Life member OBS Joe Huber
http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/HOUSESPARROWCONTROL http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/RoostingBluebirds Date: Mon, 16 Jul 2001 09:50:00 -0400 Joyce, central Virginia Just noticed something Mrs. Bluebird is doing and wanted to see if anyone has noticed this. I always thought that when the fecal sac is taken form the nest, that the parent would fly off some distance away from the nest and just drop in while in flight. I have observed Mrs. Bluebird (haven't seen Mr. Bluebird take one away while I was observing...) take the fecal sac and deposit it on a bare branch in a nearby tree. She has six of them on the branch now.... Anyone else every observe this? Joyce
Date: Mon, 16 Jul 2001 18:13:01 -0700 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. Yes, Joyce, I regularly see bluebird parents depositing fecal sacs on bare tree branches. My trail boxes hang in trees and parents will sometimes choose a couple of favorite spots to deposit multiple fecal sacs; especially in hot weather and toward the end of the nesting cycle when their energy seems to drag. Joyce Sobey wrote: Joyce, central Virginia ...
Date: Mon, 16 Jul 2001 21:53:37 -0500 Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas In the original slide program that NABS put out in the early 1980's they included a slide showing a large pile of fecal sacks where a bluebird would fly to a perch and drop the sacks in a small area basically making a pile out of them. I have never seen this done by any other bluebird and this unusual slide was removed from later updated slide programs.
Date: Tue, 17 Jul 2001 11:28:20 -0700 While looking up some info on this question, I found the following in Ornithology by Frank Gill: Nest sanitation is made easier for most passerine birds and woodpeckers because their young excrete fecal sacs, which are packages of excrement surrounded by a gelatinous membrane. The parents can easily pick up the sac and drop it away from the nest. Incomplete digestion by nestlings leaves some residual food in their fecal sac, which is often consumed by parents for nutrition as well as sanitation purposes. In one study, fecal sacs provided 10% of the daily energy requirements of adult White-crowned Sparrows. Now, I expect that's more than you ever wanted to know about nature's "disposable diapers"! Judy Mellin ... Date: Fri, 27 Jul 2001 21:51:04 -0500 I would like to find out if anyone else has heard this and if it is true. I was listening to a program on Christian radio and this program was talking about the role of fathers. They used an example of bluebird fathers. I found it very interesting so I sent off for the transcript. I would like to share it with you guys. Let me know if anyone has seen this occur with the male bluebirds. I'll type the transcript so you can know what is being referenced. Mike Scarbrough PROTECTIVE, TEACHING FATHERS The first scientific studies that showed essential differences between male and females, men and women, were not well recieved by some. Many Christians have resisted the teachings that men and women are by nature the same. Christians have traditionally understood the Bible to teach that males and females each have essential, honorable, but different roles to play. Unfortunately, many Christians have been unsure how to describe those roles. As we study the Scriptural portrayal of the family, especially in Ephesians chapter 5, a picture begins to emerge. All the Scriptural examples of motherhood and fatherhood can be distilled into one basic idea. What we call a healthy maternal instinct and a healthy desire on the part of the male to protect and prevent danger are only two sides of the same coin. An example of what this means was recently discovered in bluebirds. Scientist have found that bluebird fathers offer their nestling daughters twice as much food as their sons. Of course, the sons are never allowed to go hungry. Scientist were puzzled by this until someone suggested that by doing this, father bluebird was teaching his daughters, by example, how to select a mate. Female bluebirds are very fussy about selecting a mate. One of the most important things they look for in a mate is the ability to provide plenty of food for the next generation. Creation Moments, Inc. Date: Sat, 28 Jul 2001 14:45:45 -0400 Mike, I have also read about the study that shows this behavior in the male bluebird. Curiously, the female bluebird shows no preference in feeding her young. More curoiusly, the male bluebird accurately shows this preference even before scientists can determine the sex of the chick! As far as the reason for the behavior, the study suggested that it could be an attempt at reducing breeding competition. If more females survive, then there is a better chance of each male finding a mate. I enjoyed the post, it was definitely on subject. Pam in Abingdon, Harford County, Maryland -----Original Message----- ... Date: Sun, 29 Jul 2001 17:02:08 -0400 Once again, behavior that I haven't seen before. Is it familiar to anyone? Can you explain? The third nesting of bluebirds in my backyard has just begun hatching - 2 of 4 eggs sometime between Friday evening and late Saturday morning. (Haven't checked today as the weather is cool and rainy). The four bluebirds from the June 29 fledging continue to hang around the yard and the feeder where I place about twenty mealworms a day. The male bluebird is still feeding them occasionally and the four fledglings are funny to watch as they follow him everywhere! The female bluebird has been ignoring the fledglings ever since she started brooding the new clutch and they, in turn, have ignored the nest box. All is well in bluebird land.... until today. Abruptly, all has changed and there is no more peace in bluebird-ville. The fledglings keep hovering frantically in a group in front of the nest box hole. The female bluebird flies out at them and chases them around the yard. When she returns to the nest box, the male bluebird then sets off after them. He won't even allow them to perch on the feeder or other unused nest box... seems to want them out of the yard. What has happened? Is their "childhood" time up? Are they being chased away for good? Are they just curious about the new nestlings? Is there something wrong in the box? It is a rainy and cool day, but if they wanted shelter there is another, empty nest box in the yard... why are they fluttering around in front of the nest box hole? Are the parents bluebirds trying to protect the mealworm food source since the weather has changed so dramatically? The sharing of any similar experiences or interpretation of the behavior of both parents and fledglings would be welcome. Thanks in advance Date: Sun, 29 Jul 2001 17:50:48 -0400 Haleya Priest Amherst MA Pam, Not sure about hovering around hole -but everything else sounds absolutely normal. Yes, the fledgling's "childhood" is nearly over and the parents are "kicking them out of the nest" in a brand new way. They must have fledged a little over a month ago or so - they have now learned to eat on their own and while mom and dad will be gracious for a time past the 4 weeks, they are becoming territorial. I have the same thing going on here. Some days they are more irritated with the fledglings than others, and have even attacked them at times. Again, perfectly normal. After your current brood hatches, and autumn nears, you'll most likely see all the babies they have fledged come back to your yard and as a family they will most likely spend the winter together. :-) H Date: Sun, 29 Jul 2001 22:13:31 -0400 (EDT) Hi Pam, I believe the young are just excited that young are being hatched in the new nest. Parents are being protective and don't want outsiders near young in box. It is about time for these young birds to hunt on their own so maybe both things are happening at once. Maybe these young will help with feeding as some do. time will tell. Don't think you have any worry with their actions. Keep an eye on them from now on, but there doesn't seem to be any problem so far. Joe Huber Venice, Fl. la.27.1171494 lo-82.4124222 near gulf coast Charter member NABS, Charter member OBS, Life member OBS Joe Huber http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/HOUSESPARROWCONTROL http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/RoostingBluebirds From: "Gary Springer"
springer"at"alltel.net Date: Mon, 19 Nov 2001 11:40:12 -0500 It is widely recognized that during the winter chickadees, tufted titmice,
and downy woodpeckers travel through the forest in groups during the winter. From: Birderinkansas"at"aol.com Hi everyone. Just got an email from a teacher: "A student of mine brought up a question that spurred on a lot of discussion. The question was : Why do birds sit so closely together on telephone wires, and why do they mostly face the same way?" Good question! My answer, a guess, was: "high up on the lines, the closeness would offer an extra bit of warmth & protection from the wind, & the direction probably has a lot to do with the wind, facing their faces out of the wind, or to keep an eye on a particular food/water source." Anyone else know? Thanks! Date: Wed, 16 Jan 2002 17:07:46 -0800 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. Seems to me that the birds are facing the sunrise in the morning and the sunset at night--regardless of wind conditions. It is up to the observer to determine whether the birds are basking in the heat of the sun or in the glory of the moment. From: "emcooper" emcooper"at"bayou.com Linda, this is the same with me. In the early mornings when I walk my trail, the bluebirds are sitting on the power line facing the eastern sun and they are a gorgeous sight with their bright orange breasts framed by their blue heads and backs sitting there. In the afternoons, I ride past them in my car to count them and they are always facing west. Evelyn Cooper Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. From: "Keith & Sandy Kridler" kridler"at"1starnet.com Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas Of course these birds may be a lot smarter than us and know the exact spot the sun needs to set or rise in order for them to begin the nest building season. They may be sitting there saying yes honey you are correct better start packing; just 2.09134 degrees further north and I can sing out that spring is here again! KK From: "Helen and Gene Keusch" gkeusch"at"psci.net Hi-- am hoping that someone can solve this mystery for me. From the beginning--- last summer we had a pair of bluebirds build in a wren house that was hanging from our front porch. The wrens built in the garage. But the bluebirds had three families in the wren box. So I now have a bluebird box up on the porch, and others around the yard. The bluebirds have been going in and out--so am hoping they stay. But the past week we have had a male bluebird attach my patio door, attach the screened windows. There are about 2 or 3 couples, but this one just can't leave the door alone. I even have a fake owl hanging on the inside of the door-- he flies toward it. Is this normal behavior for these beautiful little birds? I do hope they stay-- they eat at the feeders with the other birds. This is the first year we have had bluebirds around the house, and act like this. Any suggestions or explanations? Helen Zuber Keusch in southern Indiana Date: Tue, 26 Feb 2002 22:49:09 -0800 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda This morning I received a call from a homeowner where a new bluebird box had been hung. Bluebirds were fighting their reflection in the side mirrors and splattering one of their cars parked behind the house. While they were washing down the soiled car, the bluebirds turned their attention to one of the *other* cars. Frustrated, the homeowners moved all their cars to the front street, but the bluebirds followed the parade to the front where there were also visitor's cars to attack. Then, the homeowners heard knocking at the door, went to answer it and saw bluebirds hitting the glass panels in the front door. Someone left their car window down and a bluebird discovered the interior rear view mirror. The homeowner didn't mention the condition of the car's interior after the bluebird was shooed out, but he gave me a call to say "That's it." I drove over there immediately after work to intercede on behalf of the energetic bluebird pair by explaining it would only last a few weeks and that it was a good sign to see such protective behavior in a declining species (western bluebirds are still declining). During the visit, socks and bags were placed over car mirrors and I'll provide a large bluebird flag to drape over the glass panels of their front door. But . . . before leaving, I noticed the victorious bluebird pair intermittently chattering to themselves at the nestbox holes and making excursions to the back window of a car. :) From: "Molly Jo Miller" johnson-miller"at"email.msn.com Greetings all, I was catching up on some of the Bluebird Digests and saw Keith Kridler's note that people with even one nest box should observe their birds and share what they've noticed. It finally prompted me to get going on this e-mail I've been meaning to write before we get into full breeding season. Here is the situation. I live on about 5 acres, most of which is woodsy except for our north yard that runs below a power line. In the north yard I have a bunch of nest boxes. On the west side of our driveway I started with three boxes in a triangle, each about 10 feet apart. The two boxes on the west side (base) of the triangle are normal, wooden (NABs) boxes. The box on the eastern point of the triangle was a Gilbertson PVC. Then, on the east side of our driveway I have two Petersons, one about 15 feet north of the other. In April a female EAstern BLuebird built her nest in the north Peterson. The male seemed much more happy with this location than the female. He frequently visited the box; basically she visited only to make the nest. They would leave the yard for long periods of time, making me believe they were looking for other housing. On 4/27 the nestcup was completed. Unfortunately the temperature soared into the 80s and I decided I better remove the air vent plugs from the side of the nestbox. That evening both Male and Female returned, looked in the now-vented box and left. What was remarkable was that after they departed, Black-Capped CHickadees, TREe Swallows and HOuse WRens all checked out the EABLs beautiful nest/nestbox, and all chose not to build over it. On 5/9 the TREe SWallows made their nest box choice... she chose TWO boxes--the wooden nest boxes on the west side of the triangle in our yard west of the driveway. At the end of the day, I looked into the two boxes and they had identical nesting materials and shapes... even down to one feather per box! This duplicate nest-building continued until the very end! Both nests were given equal treatment until on 5/16 when she laid her first egg in the north box. Meanwhile, on 5/11 the EABL pair returned. I know I can't identify them with 100 percent certainty, but after watching EABLS for hours, you get to know their habits and personalities. In addition, the female was a particularly gray bird. I'm sure this was the same pair by their behavior and her color. Between the two week absence I assume that they had a nest failure in another location. They were here on 5/12 and then left the yard again. On 5/21 the EABL pair returned again! Once again, the male continued to draw her to the Peterson box with her completed nest. She kept looking at the other nest boxes in the yard, including the two held by the TRES. Once again, I believe they must've had a failed nesting... I mean, the end of May is a very late start for their first nesting. This time the EABLs were going to make a stand. Both the male and female got into a major battle with TRES over their nestboxes. The TRES won because, by this time, they were protecting 5 eggs. So, the EABLs came and went from the yard. On 5/25 the female EABL rehabilitated the nest in the north Peterson box (sitting there since the end of April and being trampled by multiple avian visitors) back into its beautiful nestcup. No other nest-building had been done. On 5/28 we returned from a Memorial Weekend vacation and the Gilbertson (about 10 feet east of the TRES nest) had a shallow nest, but with a good cup. On 5/30 the EABL laid her first egg in the Gilbertson. On 6/1 the male EABL's right wing feathers were spread across the west lawn. (Every year I get an adult EABL taken by hawks--evidently not as common to most people on the list.) So, now what would happen to her and her 3 eggs? She seemed to disappear on 6/2... but no, wait, she was spending her time inside the nest box incubating the eggs she had!!! On 6/3 I checked the nest box and found 5 warm eggs! (That was when I e-mailed the list to ask about the egg-production process. Was the male merely hurt and in hiding recovering or was he gone? As the list told me, the eggs were already in the chute... so he was dead.) So, she had started incubating when the fourth egg was laid. I fed the female mealworms. She'd eat and skedaddle back to the nest. On 6/8 the female didn't come for mewos. Oh no. Well, I found her and a visiting male caught in nest-box traps in boxes next to each other in the east side of the yard. Bad first date... he ran for the hills and she ran back to the nest box. On 6/10, another male (perhaps the same one from the 8th?) appeared in the yard. They checked out the other nest boxes together, but she'd always hurry back to her eggs at the appropriate time. For the next few days, the male would try to lure the female off to start their own family... he'd check nest boxes, he'd chirp loudly from in the yard and beyond the yard, he'd try to jump her bones... but she stuck tightly to her eggs. I was gone on 6/16, came home in the afternoon of 6/17 and found the EABLs chirping loudly from trees and perches. The nest was empty--no mess, no eggs, no nothing. Oh brother. For the next few days, the pair would come and get mealworms and then leave. I re-arranged nest boxes--so that two Gilbertson PVCs formed an east side of a square with the original wooden (NABs) boxes that the TRES were using. So now I had 4 boxes in a square, each about 10 feet apart. (The NABs boxes on the west side--the north one with the TRES eggs and the south one with the TRES decoy(?) nest-- and the Gilbertsons on the east side of the square.) On 6/23 the TRES fledged, opening up another nestbox. I think the female EABL had been waiting for the the TRES to leave. On 6/25 the female EABL finally made a move to nest. She rehabilitated the extra TRES nest that had been built in the south wooden nest box--removed all but one feather and reshaped the nestcup. (It had gotten quite flattened as the male TRES often used that nest box to look out, waiting for the female TRES to leave her incubation. When she'd leave the north box, he'd come out of the south box and sit atop the box with the eggs to protect them.) Well, low and behold, on 6/26 the female EABL began building a nest in the south Gilbertson (10 feet east of the rehabilitated TRES nest in the wooden box). Then she started taking grass to the north Gilbertson!! By 6/30 the south Gilbertson had a very shallow nest with a cup and the north Gilbertson had denser grass, but it was still in the outline form with no nest cup. On 7/1 the first egg was laid in the south Gilbertson. (I think having the two fake/decoy nests around her nest box was a protective measure. As was the TRES making two identical nests. Both birds seemed to do it with intent... not as mistakes. How common is this practice? Or did I set them up for this solution to having this many nest boxes so close?) Again, the female chose to begin incubation after laying the second to last egg (on 7/4). I assume in both cases it was a choice made to speed up the process (since 7/1 is a very late first nesting). Meanwhile, Minnesota was having a major heatwave. I added a thick board of styrofoam over the nestbox to aid in shading and to help combat the heat. On Day 13 of incubation (i.e. on 7/17) at 8:00 p.m. one egg had hatched and one chick was half-way out of the egg (the mom had eaten the top half of the shell). On 7/18 at 9:30 a.m. three hatchlings were fine with a fourth egg having a peck hole in it. On 7/19 at 10:45 a.m. there were five hatchlings with half a shell still in the nest. I assume that having the female begin incubation early and then the heatwave contributed to the eggs hatching over three days. On 7/23 the parents began removing fecal sacs. On 7/30 one of the birds was noticeably behind in its development. (On 7/31 as the temperature hit 99 degrees with extremely high humidity, one of the Minnesota Vikings succumbed to heat stroke, dieing overnight in the hospital.) On 8/4, days 18, 17 and 16 of the nestling stage (due to hatching over a 3- day period) at least two birds fledged, although I think that three did. When I went out to watch the EABLs on 8/5 I could see three fledglings sitting huddled near each other in a tree waiting for probably two more birds to fledge. On 8/6 (days 20, 19, 18 as nestlings) I watched the nest box some in the morning and then all afternoon. By afternoon, there seemed to be just one bird still in the box, based on the feeding patterns and seeing the nestling come up to the hole-- but I still could see only 3 fledglings sitting on the tree together waiting. On 8/7 I decided that I would look inside the nestbox because I was getting worried about what happened to the fifth nestling--and at this point even the last bird to hatch would be 19 days old. Thankfully, I thought, at 6:30 a.m. I saw that the "last" nestling had fledged. I found it on the lawn hopping toward the trees. That afternoon I cleaned out the nest and found a dessicated nestling. I had sat and watched the nestbox most of the day on the 6th...and failed to figure out that there was a bird inside dieing as I watched. Several days later on the Bluebird Listserve members talked about the importance of checking nest boxes late in the nestling stages... against all the advice not to to prevent them from premature fledging. Boy, do I wish I'd have looked in there earlier--when I started feeling uncomfortable about the whereabouts of that fifth baby. It wasn't with the other three fledglings and it seemed like there was only one nestling still getting food from the parents. Anyway, I saw and learned new things about EABLs again. Has anyone else seen birds building decoy nests? It seemed to be the fad in our yard last summer. I'm hoping this summer will be an easier and more straight-forward nesting season! Molly Jo Miller From: "Molly Jo Miller" johnson-miller"at"email.msn.com Greetings all, It is starting to appear that my experience last summer with TREe Swallows and EAstern BLuebirds simultaneously building at least two nests when the nest boxes were about 10 to 15 feet apart is common. I'm going to call them decoy nests--or maybe space-savers. As I mentioned to someone, it's similar to us hanging a coat over a chair or two to save them for friends who will be joining us at a restaurant, school play or get-together. (Quick summary of my earlier post: Last summer the TREe Swallows built two identical nests in boxes that were about 10 feet apart in a north-south configuration. The TRES fledged and I had a finicky female EABL trying to figure out where to build a nest. I put up two more boxes about 10 feet east of the two boxes "used" by the TRES. This gave me four nestboxes in a square configuration. Shortly thereafter, the EABL removed the feathers from the TRES's unused south nest and reshaped the cup. Then she built another nest in the box about 10 feet east of the reshaped TRES nest and at the same time built most of another nest in the box about 10 feet north of her nest. She used only the one that she fully built.) Bruce Burdett, I wish you had more EABLs over there with all your paired
boxes to see if this is what they do when there are more EABLs and fewer Molly Jo Miller -----V.M.S.'s Original Message Clipped-------- From: "Bruce Burdett" blueburd"at"srnet.com Molly Jo, From: "Lee & Jim Johnson" mybuffy1"at"mindspring.com Hello, We have had more than normal occurrences with sparrows recently; and as a result, have attached monofiliament to the box over last weekend. As far as sparrow control, it was totally effective. (Since that, we have not seen one sparrow on the box.) Then, as daily monitoring revealed, less and less grass was in the box--it appears the bluebirds are actually taking it out of the box. While we have not seen that, we have seen both the male and femaler with grass in their mouths, going in and out of the box quite frequently. Today, no part of the nest remains. The bluebirds are almost always at the nestbox (or at another one in the yard about 50 ft. away-so it is not a case of them disappearing from the area.) Does it sound as if the sparrows may have started building over their nest and the bluebirds are now removing it, since they are no longer there? Every year, just when I think I understand their behavior, something else, strange, occurrs.20 Any thoughts? Lee in Missouri From: Fjstair"at"cs.com Hello, Date: Fri, 05 Apr 2002 22:05:05 -0500 I've been watching some interesting behavior amongst the bluebirds this week. A male and female have a nest built and on this third day of egg laying, they now have three eggs. The male chased the other over-wintering males away weeks ago, however, there are two other females (besides his mate) that he is allowing to hang with them and feed at the feeder. He has a real strong desire to feed his mate, and he will pick up mealworms three or four at a time and try to shove them down her throat. She'll usually accept the first shovel-full and then refuse additional offers. Whenever she refuses his offer, he then flies the mouthful of worms to the nestbox, sticks his head inside, waits a few seconds, and then returns to the feeder with his mouth still full of worms. It almost seems as if he's looking for nestlings to feed. However, he never offers the worms to the two other females hanging around (I don't know how he can tell them apart!) Have others on the list seen this? Is it common or could this be an inexperienced male? Is it likely that the 2 other females are their "kids" from last year? Pam in Abingdon, Harford County, Maryland From: "Karen Louise Lippy" brdbrain"at"superpa.net Pam, I'm surprised that the female hasn't driven them away, though. They provide potential competition for her with the male. We had an incidence years ago where 2 females nested in the same box, apparently mated to the same male. They had 9 eggs between them and both took turns incubating, then feeding the chicks that hatched. It seemed quite a harmonious arrangement for all. Someone sent in a report of a similar incident to NABS which was published in their magazine. All the 'experts' lambasted them saying it couldn't happen. I sent in my report and they also received several others. Faced with these reports, it was decided that the second female could possibly be an offspring from the previous year that had been allowed to remain with the adults. Only banding could provide the definitive answer to that. I suspect the male flying to the box with worms indicates he is trying to move the hen along to nest building. The worms are a bribe to get her to investigate the site. Good luck with your nesting. ----- Original Message ----- ... From: "Keith & Sandy Kridler" kridler"at"1starnet.com Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas Harry Krueger banded bluebirds, the young and then trapped all nesting adults in his 65 nestboxes each year, each nesting to determine nestbox fidelity and fidelity between adult birds here in Northeast Texas. He found it VERY common to have at least one of the females to fledge to nest very close to her parents the next year while most of the first year males seemed to "disappear" and then some reappear over the next couple of years. He was VERY excited one year when FIVE young banded females from a nestbox returned to nest in the five closest boxes to their parents. His boxes were scattered along roadsides in the heart of the Piney woods region of Texas which is really too thick for good bluebird habitat. Harry lived outside of Ore City (iron ore) right on a 70,000 acre flood control lake called Lake-O-The-Pines. Bluebirds were hemmed in by the lake and pine forests in the area. Most of the pine and hardwoods in the region are now being cut for a local waferboard plant. Nest sites were at a premium near Harry and he normally had 90% of his boxes being used by bluebirds at one time or the other during the latter half of the nesting season when chickadees, titmice and nuthatches were done. Eggs or young in our part of Texas are present from Feb.Sept. I checked boxes with him one day and we found 64 of the 65 boxes with ACTIVE nests of bluebirds with either eggs or young and the empty box had been cleaned the week before. He averaged fledging over 10 bluebirds per box some years. He trapped a banded male bluebird feeding "his" young in March after this bird had fledged in August or at 7 months old was able to attract a mate and hold a nestbox against mostly older 2 and 3 year old males on Harry's trail. A larger percentage of unbanded males turned up on Harry's trail than unbanded females. Our birds do not migrate but remain as a family unit all during the summer, into winter and break up in JanFeb. Normally with the adult pair remaining together. On one occasion Harry found a bigamist, the male was feeding two females and their young in two boxes about 50 feet apart. He found two pairs that actually swapped mates but on average if a male or female disappeared they never were found nesting with other mates on his trail. The bluebirds that do migrate out of the far north and split up on the wintering grounds would have a harder time remaining mated for life. Males tended to "disappear" more than females as the females were safer in Harry's well protected nestboxes. He had a 6 year old female that nested in the same box she was born in for all six years but was with her third mate for their second or third year together when Harry got a call that a cat killed the male bluebird. He immediately went to the bait store for a box full of crickets and went straight to the nest site. Upon reaching there he discovered that it was the male and the female was now alone to raise 6 young that were 12 days old. A year in the life of a bluebird probably is comparable to about ten human years, so after 25 years or so of "marriage" this tragic but normal ending came about....Harry was devastated standing there and holding the still warm bluebird....When a strange bluebird flew into the yard....A male....Wing waving and bluebird talk filled the air....Fifteen minutes after the cat murdered the male a new unbanded male began helping the female feed her young. They mated and raised another brood together later that summer and Harry admitted he was a little rough with the female when he trapped her for the next nesting! He said,"Surely after all that time together she could of at LEAST waited a full day." He said he just stood their with his neighbor holding the male while tears fell on the soft blue feathers, tears of sadness and not joy. These are "wild" creatures and we should not humanize them or try to reason with human emotions but THAT is why these birds are so intriguing. Banding shows tremendous courage as what they can survive and how far they can travel and find their way back home. They will continue feeding their young with a cat perched atop their box swiping at them every trip into and out of the box. Harry went through a very tough divorce and never remarried and always said, "These birds have greater fidelity than humans, in regards to their mate, they have greater devotion to their children and their utter lack of regard for their own safety when attacking a larger predator is demonstrated time after time." "BUT they don't waste time on mourning a loss!" Best wishes for a great bluebird season as THIS is what it is all about! Get involved and get your children involved and then your neighbors and then....Keith Kridler Date: Sat, 6 Apr 2002 18:25:15 -0800 (PST)
Hello all, The dominant pair of Blues has set up a nest and the female began incubating 5 eggs today. Most of the winter, as many as 9 Blues showed up at the mealie feeder which is located about 25 yards from the nestbox with 5 eggs. More than 4 weeks ago, the dominant pair drove away all the other Blues from the territory. The dominant pair has had no EABL competition for mealies however, chickadees, nuthatches and the tufted titmouse would take a small share of the mealies Things changed just like in previous years once the egg laying process began.
When mealies are loaded into the feeder the male perches on top of it. He does
not eat or allow any other bird to enter the feeder until the female takes her
fill and returns to the nestbox to incubate the eggs. The difference this year
from other years is that on this past Wednesday another male Blue is being
allowed to eat 'leftover mealies'. The dominant pair seems remarkably tolerant
of the male Blue in their territory. Twice before I have seen female Blues
accepted/tolerated by a dominant pair during nesting but never a male. Since
this phenomina is on my indiana trail I will not be able to monitor continued
interaction between the nesting pair and the odd male but I will watch when I
can. Have a good day Bob Sitarski a.k.a The Doctor Jackson County Indiana ( 385244N 086023W ) & Clay County Illinois ( 384008N 0882908W ) Date: Tue, 9 Apr 2002 06:50:28 -0700 (PDT) Hello all, I have fed mealies daily to a particular pair of EABL for more than 9 months now. They had never gone two consecutive days without mealies let alone three. I watched this morning with special interest as I filled the feeder with mealies before it even got light. I heard and eventually saw the male Blue well before morning light. He seemed content to perch and hunt on a rather windy morning. He landed on the Redbud tree near the feeder several times without even looking into the feeder and would just move on. As the sun made it's appearance so did the female Blue. She also landed near the feeder once but retreated when engaged by a Robin guarding it's territory. Nearly 1 1/2 hours after the male first appeared and about a hour after she
appeared, the female EABL finally went to the feeder. Quietly, she ate several
mealies then appeared to return to her nestbox/eggs about 300 yards away from
the feeder.The male EABL never did go to the feeder before I had to leave for
work. Not a single HOSP showed up at the feeder either. Have a good day Bob Sitarski a.k.a The Doctor Jackson County Indiana ( 385244N 086023W ) & Clay County Illinois ( 384008N 0882908W ) From: Shane Marcotte marco50"at"bellsouth.net Hello, From: "Karen Louise Lippy" brdbrain"at"superpa.net Shane, Fortunately for the bluebirds, insects are quite plentiful unless cold, wet temperatures make them inactive. Then they turn to berries to fufill their food intake. Summer diet is generally 90 percent insects and 10 percent berries. Winter diet is 90 percent berries and 10 percent insects where insects become scarce due to cold temperatures. When they have chicks in the box, they remain as close as possible to do their hunting so they can be aware of potential predators. Shorter and more frequent trips are possible the closer to the site they can remain. It takes A LOT of insects to help those chicks grow from tiny naked critters to beautiful speckled birds which fledge from the box. Karen from South Central PA ----- Original Message ----- ... From: "Mandy Hils" ahils"at"insightbb.com OK Kiddos here's another dilema. I have been having a heck of a time this spring. HOSP were driving me crazy. Ordered the Van Ert traps and boy do I have that down, I haven't tallied my numbers yet but my husband affectionately calls me the HOSP Hunter. Any way, that brings me to this. My yard has been visited all spring by a pair of BB's, hunting and showing interest in my boxes but they always left due to hosp. Yesterday the BB pair returned with a vengence. Going in and out of the box and staying around all day, just when I had given up. :-) This morning I look out the window and hubby say's there is something out there messing with the blues. Oh no, not again! Actually, as he said this, two birds were fighting on the ground and not getting up. Hubby runs out and breaks it up and one of the birds actually landed on his hand. It turns out, my male BB has female troubles. There are two females vying for his attention and they are chasing and fighting each other all over the yard. Have any of you seen this? Good grief, now I have to monitor cat fights between two females? Help, anyone have an extra male? They won't kill one another will they? I sure wasn't expecting this. Just venting, From: hubertrap"at"webtv.net (Joe Huber) Hi Mandy, Yes female Bluebirds do tangle with each other at times. I witnessed that one time and took super 8 movies of it. I seen these two female Bluebirds fighting each other and got the camera. As I walked out into the yard they tumbled to the ground and rolled over and over. They were so wrapped up in conflict that I walked up to about 20 feet of them trying to get a close up. They had their legs and feet wrapped around each other holding wings closed. I stood there and took the roll of film until the male came flying down landing right on them. This broke them up and one female left the area while the other joined the male. I never figured out how they decided which one was the winner,but they continued on to have a successful nest with no more conflicts. Joe Huber Venice Fl. Charter member NABS, Charter member OBS, Life member OBS Joe Huber hubertrap"at"webtv.net http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/HOUSESPARROWCONTROL
http://community.webtv.net/hubertrap/RoostingBluebirds 27.1171494 N Lo -82.4124222 W Date: Wed, 01 May 2002 08:39:09 -0700 We had the same experience earlier this spring! I even caught a picture of the two females fighting on the ground. I was very worried, but eventually one of them flew off, and it's been happy times for Mom and Dad BB ever since. I hope your situation resolves itself soon! Emily On Wed, 1 May 2002 07:40:37 -0400 Mandy Hils ahils"at"insightbb.com wrote: OK Kiddos here's another dilema. ... From: "John C James" jjames14"at"nc.rr.com I almost forgot to report that on Friday the EABL parents were acting strangely. They flew to and fro' and when Mama perched hert feathers were ruffled. (Now I understand the origination of the expression.) To check, I went out on the deck and found at the bottom of the steps up to the deck a baby EABL on the ground. As I approached he jumped a few feet away. Afraid he would be prey for a predator I decided to scoop him up gingerly and put him back in the nestbox, and cover the hole for a bit. As I approached him Mama and Papa commenced sorties with me as the apparent target, but, nevertheless, I persisted in my intended endeavor. As my hand approached and to to my delight the baby flew to a lower baranch of a nearby tree where I knew he would be okay. The other four fledged on subsequent days with no further problems. Was my intended action approriate, and also have I now executed all my responsibilities, or are there any more appropriate tasks for me to complete? John James Date: Tue, 7 May 2002 14:03:45 -0400 For the last two weeks, approximately, mother bluebird has been incubating her five eggs. I estimated the hatching date as 5/8 (tomorrow). The male was rarely seen, except occasionally darting quickly to the box with food for his mate. This morning, my husband observed a lot of activity at the box, both male and female entering and leaving, male perching on the roof, much flying to and fro, some wing waving, but there were no predators nearby. Consequently, we both assumed that the eggs had hatched, but when I checked the box (amid dive bombing, of course), it still contained the five eggs, in perfect condition, so far as I could tell. Are the soon-to-be hatchlings starting to peck their way out of their shells, which sounds the expectant parents can hear? Diane Seward From: doncarol doncarol"at"bendnet.com For the last two weeks, approximately, mother bluebird has been ... Diane, Don McCartney Date: Wed, 8 May 2002 11:09:33 -0400 Three of the five eggs hatched yesterday, and parents are active but much calmer today. So the female must have either heard the chicks "pipping" or possibly felt vibrations as she incubated. Many thanks to Jay Gilliam and Don McCartney for their helpful responses. Diane Seward |
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