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Starting a New Bluebird Trail (Part 2)Also see Abandoned Boxes (by humans) From: "Scott Fike" kc0bus"at"hotmail.com Hi all, I am new to the list and am wanting to set up my very first Bluebird Trail! Although it is already late May, I would still like to get it set up for hopefully any late broods left in the breeding season here in Missouri. I have already done some scouting of possible site locations for my trail. One site in particular looks very promising as I have already seen many, many Bluebirds in this area (a very large park out in the country). I still need to obtain permission from the park manager (or whomever I need to get permission from). I am very handy and I'm fully capable of building all of the boxes myself, however, the main obstacle blocking my trail plans is funds. I am very bereft of funds right now, so I need to keep the cost extremely low. I can add more boxes, predator guards, sparrow traps, etc. later as money permits, but right now I am shooting for anywhere from 4 boxes up to as many as 15, depending on how many boxes I can build for a reasonable cost while I get started. I have both the time and the potential area to monitor as many as 60+ boxes (by my early estimations anyway,... possibly a lot more later on!, but that could change after I get an idea of how much I can really monitor by myself). I guess what I need are opinions on which box design I can put together in the largest quanity with the least amount of cash outlay. I have been looking at the Tuttle box as 3 can be very quickly built from a single 10' long 1x10. The only thing that bothers me about the Tuttle design is I am hesitant about the fact that it can only be constructed with the grain of the wood going against the long parallels of the planks of the box causing a greater potential for warpage in years to come. I have looked at 4" PVC tube boxes but the end caps are very costly at $5.50 each! So I guess PVC tubes are out. From: "Fawzi P. Emad femad <at> fpemad <dot> com If I were to make many (over 20) boxes at one time, I'd use the NABS box design, but I'd make the roof larger (like 10x12.) If you need to put traps similar to the Huber trap, it would be better to make the boxes front- rather than side-opening. This requires some design modifications... Let me know if you need my plans for the front opening design. [You'll need a band saw to make some of the cuts on this design.] Fawzi Fawzi Emad in Laytonsville, Maryland From: "ke4fej1" ke4fej1"at"email.msn.com Hi! I am Christy and new to this list and Bluebirding. My question to you is... Where are your trails and amount of boxes......Did you use only private land? If you put up boxes by fence lines, on the road easements, did you get your city or county permission? Did you have to get permits? Sign papers? I ask this because I am now starting to put up a Bluebird trail in my county. I told my county government what I was planning to do. I have been asked to sign a total liability paper and pay for a permit, which instead of being for each box they will let the permit cover ..X.. amount of boxes. Plus I have to give them plans on where the boxes will placed. All I wanted was to make sure that they did not tear my boxes down. Please let me know if you had to do anything along this line. **Saw my first ever Bluebirds, babies and eggs this weekend in Hardee County FL...and lots of them! Thank You, Christy From: "Fawzi P. Emad femad <at> fpemad <dot> com I live in Montgomery County, MD. The County naturalist asked for volunteers to start and maintain trails for Bluebirds. I volunteered. The naturalist, Denise, was very neat. She assigned me a park about 3 miles from home. It is also a "conservation" park which means it is closed to the general public. She walked with me all over the trail and together we decided where to place the boxes. Mostly I do as I like, but I think it is better to let her know and ask her opinion before I go ahead with any changes. I make the boxes, and buy all the material at my own expense. The County would pay me back, but so far I have not asked for anything! The County also makes a party at the end of the season for all the volunteers. Of course the Bluebird movement and the establishment of the NABS took place here by Dr. Zeleny in Montgomery and Prince George's Counties. Perhaps this is the reason there is more public appreciation of Bluebird conservation efforts. Also, Denise worked for years under Dr. Zeleny! Fawzi Fawzi Emad in Laytonsville, Maryland To: bluebird-l"at"cornell.edu I am a volunteer with the For-Mar Nature Preserve in Genesee County, Michigan. It is part of the Genesee County Parks and we have a dinner for the volunteers once a year. So far we have not had to get any permits to put up boxes in Michigan. When we put up boxes along the Hi-ways we have to let MDOT know about it. Maynard Sumner From: "ke4fej1" ke4fej1"at"email.msn.com Thank You all for your input. To answer you further question: I figured it would be easier for me to drive along a straight stretch of road to check boxes. Putting these boxes on the outside of Private Fences seemed best to me for easy access and time saving in checking. I have worked for the county myself for almost 27 yrs., searching for others easements etc. So I knew one should ask what may happen. Norma, as to feeling good that I am signing papers of liability. They are not at all for me. Anyone who gets hurt because of what is on a right-of-way can sue the county. So that covers all of us all of the time. What the county wants is for me to say that .. I .. will be responsible if anyone or anything is harmed by a Bluebird setup. Meaning if a car goes off the road at 50 mph and hits the box and it ..say..hits the driver in the head and kills them, I will be the one sued and not the county. Or, if say equipment is damaged by running over a box. I will be the one to pay. And, true if I get hurt crossing ditches to check, I will be totally responsible for me. AND.. anyone who checks any of my boxes that gets hurt checking them, like breaking an ankle in a hole, can sue me. We all know things like this could happen, and people even who say they won't do sue. Pauline, like above it is not Official Permission in a good way. It is more my official notification to the county so they can make sure they will not be responsible for the boxes and what could happen. The permit is supposed to be $36.00 to $50.00 ...per... house! But they are going to give me one that may cover say 50. Then I would have to purchase another for the next 50. The permit is a one time happening. I was told today they would probably charge the Boy Scouts too! As to putting in county parks or the larger county or state parks, there are always road easements and then county or state private land use employees who check this out..if they know about use on their side of the fence. A county commissioner today suggested permits etc. is not bad but that it was today's reality. He also said I do have lots of private land to work on and could avoid the right-a- ays for now. This is a necessary study area and is as irritating if I were to find HSSP moving into my boxes. Phil, I am hearing around here, "Build them and they will come!" Yes, there are 25 boxes in Hardee County at the Florida State Experimental Cattle Ranch. You can find a blurb about it on the internet. John Maddox is in charge. They have a box that has been used 15 yrs. I saw many that were 5 yrs. old. And they have been out at the Ranch 3-5 I believe. I looked only at 12 boxes. Only 1 empty. One had 4 ready to fledge. One with 5 babies and many other with at least 4. Many with eggs and one had 5 eggs. Parents were around every corner...............I hear at the Avon Park Bombing Range they have had at least a 100 box trail at one time. I do not know a contact person...yet! As to my county maybe 1 has been seen by Myakka Park and I think I had one in my backyard...close to town. But at that time I did not know what I was looking at. And it did looked like a fluffy blue bird with a rusty chest. Could of been.... Thank You, Christy Date: Fri, 31 May 2002 17:15:24 -0700 In California, I have a 70-box trail along a State Hwy. I got and "encroachment" permit from the State Dept of Transportation. It was free; they did have a rather stringent set of safety requirements (which were totally inappropriate for our activities and location; e.g. flagpersons, orange vests, no crossing the highway, etc.) which I politely asked an exemption from. It was a bit of hassle but since I was attaching elevator poles to their R/W fence, I needed it. The original boxes had been on the fence for 15 years before I got there! A couple of other trails are on R/Ws with permits. Many more are not. Theoretically, if you have the adjoining landowner's approval, you wouldn't need a permit since most R/Ws are for highway purposes but the land is still the landowners; the agency only holds an easement for highway purposes. But if you need to, get a pro bono lawyer to advise you. I've often thought it would be an adventure to have the DA
bring me before a judge because I was monitoring nestboxes on
public land. ;) Date: Fri, 31 May 2002 20:17:53 -0700 (PDT) Scott, Christy, and all, I'm just beginning a new project that I've been wanting to share with you all. With the New Beginner and the Permits or Not questions it seems like the perfect opportunity. First off, let me give credit where credit is due. I'd like to thank the many list members who have helped give me the knowledge and confidence to tackle this project. Much of the process has been accomplished using info from this list over the past year. The trail I monitor now is in one of Pennsylvania's State Parks. It was an orphaned trail in need of much work. PA DCNR has a great program with support from staff and other volunteers that made getting started very easy. My new project is in two municipal parks. I contacted the director of parks and recreation and he agreed to meet with me. In the meantime I talked to two local home improvement centers. Both agreed to consider donating materials provided I submit a request using township letter head. My employer, a large steel supply warehouse, agreed to donate materials for posts and predator guards. Just today I talked to a fencing contractor who gave me some five inch square PVC fence post scraps that will make good nestboxes. He said his employer has bins of scrap pieces that could probably be mine for the asking. When I met with the director of parks I asked him what he knew about bluebirds or nest boxes. His reply, "nothing, thats what I'm here to learn". So I explained the plight of cavity nesting birds and explained the need to erct, maintain, monitor and manage nest boxes. Currently, there are three twelve foot signposts with dual mounted large and standard size boxes on each in a wetland area of the park. There is no practical way to manage these boxes the way they are. I explained that the boxes were actually doing more harm than good as there was a starling nesting in one of the large boxes and two of the small boxes had house sparrows in them. Only one box was used by native cavity nesters with tree swallows. I then told about my ideas for those boxes and about adding a few more. He sounded enthusiastic about my plans and volunteering to work in the park. Then he told me the best way to go from here would be to submit a written proposal explaining everything we talked about with drawings and materials list. It would then have to be approved by the township supervisors. The subject of liability also came up, so there seems like there will be a few details to work out. My goal is to have things up and running for the '03 nesting season. Again, thanks to the list and, provided I'm given approval,
I'll be needing your help again. ===== From: "ke4fej1" ke4fej1"at"email.msn.com Hi All, Thank you all again for the info on my Permit question....My decision is to use private roads and lands only. Today I spent 5 hours and 80 miles in looking for useable BBhouse land. With new maps, notebook and pencils, binoculars and liquids. I started to drive going to ..Every.. street and road from I-75 to the Eastern edge of Sarasota County, Sarasota, FL to the Northern border and going South about five miles. Thank heaven this is mostly open country and not a lot of roads. I first found a perfect private industrial business area. Which is a straight 4 miles from my home. And then a mile South of that is another area of private roads in our local Polo Club area. All lands are owned and developed by one ranching business. I have been given a contact name to ask for permission. This ranch is also going to develope 48 square miles starting next year going further East! This area would be ideal for me to be able to moniter. ((No...not all 48 square miles!...just what I saw today.)) On the Eastern boarder of the county I found 3 possible Trail areas for under 10 boxes each. This area is also private lands and roads. I also possibly have one individual who might moniter one trail. My South boarder today runs 15 miles East from home. I found 4 large areas for trails (more than 20 boxes) in private fenced ranch home areas. I also found about 6 small Trail areas, which could link to the larger areas. My idea with these other areas is to supply the BBhouses, and find and train others to moniter those Trails. I want others to have... a lot or ...a little fun and excitment too. I did not spot one BB today. And as I have said I am not sure we even have them in my county. My plan is to work within my county and see if these county line areas have BB's and because of good habitat, that the possibility of a neighboring county BB's might fly by and stay. Then to draw those BB's to the West toward my city. That is 5 miles South and 15 West of my county lines. At least I think that this is going to be a group individual trails which will give the BB's a ...Link of homes ..toward the city, a continuing Trail. It's a plan. My BBhouse...builder took the wood away yesterday...so far
2 built, 13 in that batch to go. I am having trouble in finding...cheap
but good predator guards and nice looking..because of setup
areas. I am trying to keep one whole setup under $10.00. Any
good ideas please send them my way. Things I will put up a few boxes soon but I don't expect BB's but I will have some months to checkup on and learn of the Predators. Now this next week I go after signed permission papers! Just keeping you posted. If you think I need to know something ...please let me know. I wish I could talk about eggs and baby BB's and fledging. I just want to jump in this List too...but right now I can only tell you about locations, permissions, costs and I am so excited to think I am part of probably the most Southern County in the United States to have a Bluebird Trail! Well.........Almost have. Christy
Date: Mon, 3 Jun 2002 03:03:07 -0400 (EDT) We met with the park ranger today and will begin monitoring as soon as we complete the paperwork/fingerprinting/background check (9/11 has changed many things!) We'll be monitoring 9 easily accessed boxes. The boxes harder to get too (read steeeeeeeep hill!) are being monitored by a 20 year old girl (I'm only 7 years older, but that hill and me won't get along!). We won't be doing any pest bird controlling, so I don't have to fight the conflicting feelings about killing HOSP or TRES. We'll be taking the old nests out of the boxes after the babes fledge, keeping track of which boxes are used, how many eggs/babes, what species, fledging rate, etc. The minimum is to check once a month, but we can do it more often (we're over that way at least once a week watching osprey nests so once a week sounds good!) The ranger wants to put predator (snake) guards on all the posts, place replace the older boxes, so we'll get to do a little more than monitor :) It'll be great to learn to do this with some help and only gas money outta our pockets --- but I already have been looking at open areas around the lake thinking ... hmmm ... I bet boxes would be used here! The ranger said she's had EABL and BCCH normally in the boxes. She also told us that she'd found a little babe in a nest that had been attacked, she thought was dead, but from the warmth of her hand he started moving, so she placed it with another nest and he recently successfully fledged. She said mama was under the nest and all that was left was her wings basically. What may have attacked that box, squirrel? Snake? I also want to ask all of you on this list ... if you have
time and are willing, please check with your local parks, state
parks, Army Corp of Engineer sights, etc. They may have many
projects they need help Well, until later when I can post about the little nestlings
we're monitoring! ,_, "When we talk to God it's called prayer. When God talks back it's called schizophrenia." From: "Fread J" firefrost2"at"hotmail.com Christy wrote: "I am trying to keep one whole setup under $10.00." Please understand that I have not checked this out for current pricing, but the Oklahoma Conservation Department of Wildlife, at one time, offered a NABS-style box unassembled for $7.00 plus postage. Now I hope that everyone does not submit orders to the Oklahoma
Department of Wildlife Conservation for nestboxes!!! Forgive
me for not checking it The point I am trying to make here is for you to check out your local Conservation Department and see if they have a similar program....or wish to institute one! Also, check with local Scout leaders to see if they are interested in your trails program and in building your nestboxes for you. There are Merit Badges for things like this. Prepare a program to be given to local groups, newspaper, radio,
and even TV about your plans. Be sure to state that you are
looking for donations of lumber and materials! The Chamber of
Commerce should have a list of local groups which you can target
with your programs on "Bringing The Eastern You will meet other enthusiasts whom you were unawares of and
spread the word about the pleasantries of our hobby.....wishing
you good luck in your efforts and I request that you keep our
List/serve advised as to how you are proceeding, please! Your
efforts are commendable and it is my hope, will Warmly, From: "ke4fej1" ke4fej1"at"email.msn.com Thank You Fread, When I said a setup under $10.00 that meant box, pole and predator guard. Am I asking for a lot? So far I am getting the box for just $4.00 and the pvc pole is $1.75 ...it is the predator guard I don't know the cost right now. I think I will get under $10 per Setup, but even then at big numbers that is too much all for me to cover. I do expect to use scrap bundles of wood also. I do plan on donations. And now I know I need help in all areas. I did not expect this to get so big so fast! I FAX tomorrow my plans and ideas to Sarasota and Mantee Counties Largest land developers..lands handler. The gentleman was totally positive with all he heard....not a....But...in his thoughts. He said they have miles of fireroads and 14 regular trails 2 golf courses private schools, 15+ thousand manacured homes many on large manacured plots. And he especially wanted to talk to the person over at the Polo Club...thinking it perfect for the area and surrounding ranch-stabled homes. That is where I would like to start. And this is all less than 4 miles from my home!!! Gee, how far do BB's travel from their nest? Ya think I could get these possible new BB's to visit my home in the daytime? Keep your fingers crossed for me. He said it would only take
a couple of days to find out! And I can't think of a better
Birthday gift for me! ----- Original Message ----- ... Date: Mon, 03 Jun 2002 22:34:50 -0400 Haleya Priest Amherst MA From: "Keith & Sandy Kridler" kridler"at"1starnet.com Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas You need to determine how many bluebirds (& other natives) you expect to attract by observing the numbers of adults during nesting season. If you expect only a few pairs of bluebirds with boxes scattered all across the county and money for boxes and predator guards is going to limit the trail size then determine IF and WHAT your predator problem is going to be! Effective pole mounted guards like Ron Kingston's stovepipe guard are more costly but are the most effective at stopping climbing animals BUT they may not solve the problem you will run into the most! Although raccoons and other climbing mammals are very numerous in East Texas I seldom ever have a problem with them even with hundreds of bluebird boxes nailed to large power poles after 20 years! For South Florida, bluebirds will probably nest like in other
southern states from late Feb.mid to early Sept. You will have
one month of cool/cold temperatures and then months of 90100
degree days. Eggs and nestlings will perish if their core body
temperatures reach 107*F for a couple of hours (just like most
animals). Test potential nestbox styles with HiLo thermometers
to be sure inside the box temperatures stay below Hiabout Watch for heat gain in a nestbox! A box that is 14*F hotter inside than a control thermometer in the shade will only be "safe" for nesting birds until the daily temperature reaches 90*F. We hit the mid 90's every day this week and I drank three liters of water Saturday while checking boxes for part of the day and adult birds cannot carry water to nestlings! Consider mounting all boxes in the deep south where they will have afternoon shade (most of mine are on the East sides of power poles so that no sun shines on them at this time of year past noon.) IF you HAD to rent and drive a car for a month in the south and the rental company only had two cars, one white with tinted windows and one black one without tinted windows. Neither of these have a working AC unit OR windows that roll down, which would you rent for a month? IF you pull this car into a parking lot on a 100*F day and there are only two parking spots one in the full sun and the other has a shade awning to park under which would you choose! (The correct answer is none because you would not live a month driving either car!) Build a simple nestbox (that ANY boy/girl or man can make with a minimum of tools) out of at least 3/4" lumber and if they need to be mounted in full sun then you need to be able to add a second "shade" roof and a west facing "shade" side IF your boxes are going to be used during 90*F+ temperatures. You can add guards and shade sides/roofs AS NEEDED when you find the native birds beginning to nest. I would use a minimum of 7" deep from inside floor to bottom of 1&1/2"1&9/16" round entrance hole if you are going to shift a few guards around to active nestboxes. Scatter boxes around the county IF you only have a couple of breeding pairs! One box per mile is plenty along roadsides. 3 or 4 per 40 acre park is plenty till you see what is using nestboxes! If possible place nestboxes along roads that you can drive past while commuting to work. Jack Finch (Homes for Bluebirds) Bailey North Carolina installed and CHECKED 1,200 nestboxes from Florida to Virginia while traveling his sales route in the 1970's. Surely each of us could find a quiet road about 10 miles long and find spots for ten nestboxes! THIS IS A MOST IMPORTANT TOPIC! Getting people started correctly in other parts of the country! If Dean Sheldon, Hatch Graham, Pauline Tom, Bob Wilson, Dan McCue, Ann W. Karen, Cathy, Phil ETC from different parts of the country could add a simple post on what works best for them, what is most disappointing, what they feel is the greatest loss to predators ETC. I have watched Haleya, Tina Taylor, Em Cooper, Kathy Clark and Pauline Tom join Bluebird-L and not only get involved with their local bluebirds MORE but go on to really start their own STATE BLUEBIRD societies! WHY? We CAN make a difference with a minimum of cash out lay and maximum of results! KK From: "Jacque Turner" turner"at"texasisp.com Just a little short post to say I have my first box of EABLS - first EABL nest in any of my newly set up trail nest boxes - five blue eggs! Just this one nest makes all the effort of reworking the houses for Texas heat and all the time and trouble invested in getting the 18 houses up, well worth it. The box is tucked nicely shaded under the tip branches of a lone Post Oak tree up on a hill. Lovely real estate for the blue family. Four EABL babies have just fledged from an old box my husband's grandmother has used for years. Have a beautiful, sunshiny, bluebird kind of day! Jacque Turner Date: Wed, 05 Jun 2002 12:57:04 -0400 Hi everyone, From: "Randy Jones" randyj"at"enter.net Investing in two books would go a long way to enabling you to do that successfully: Doren Scriven's BLUEBIRD TRAILS and THE BLUEBIRD MONITOR'S GUIDE, by Keith Kridler and two others. You can order them both from the NABS website. Randy Jones Hi everyone, ... From: "ke4fej1" ke4fej1"at"email.msn.com Hi All, After my news of finding that I cannot use any part of the massive private lands in Sarasota and Manatee Counties, by that one company. I was feeling pretty low. Really low. But I have found to keep looking out.....That when one door is closed another is opened. Today I found .....The Door!!!!!! I called a county park that was close to the BBs I found last week. They have a full time ranger at this county park. I never knew it was there. I then got to talk to the head ranger of the park and he said he would love to have BB boxes put up! As the talk progressed I told him of the 89 yr. old who would build anything. Well, the ranger said they would buy ..ALL... the supplies and even deliver them to this man! Also they will take Kestrel, Woodpecker, Owl etc...any type of box. And it even got better the head ranger is in charge over ...3... parks in Manatee County and this is just what he wants done. And it is great that county people are interested in working in this area. He also wants someone who is expert in knowing where to place boxes. I think I can do fine with the BB boxes. And at work there is a fellow who does Predator birds so he should know where to place the other type boxes. The ranger even said we could use the workshop they have there. I think the three parks total about 100 square miles. So I think we have a little room to put up boxes. The ranger said the biggest problem is people who have good intentions but they never follow through. He has offered land and materials before but nobody ever took him up on it. Well...I AM! I am not going away. The ranger said if only people would meet them halfway. By the time I was through talking ..at first he said they could not monitor the boxes. But then he said if his people had the proper training that they probably would like to do that too. And he is doing a large Scrub Jay project and all he needs is people to come sit and look at the birds to help the ranger's project. I would think that can get done. Is this fantastic or what!!!!!!!! So my Goal is changing a little...it is now BBs and Box nesting birds. ((I am going to talk to ya'll about some kind of bird someday!)) Today I rounded up my new boxes and I now have 15 boxes made. And only a few need the extra piece on the front hole and drill holes for the pipe to be attached. My friend says he puts 3 together in an hour and a half and is enjoying doing it. And now I will have work for the older fellow who wants to help anyone. And I still need more land. Tomorrow I go with a typed letter to this Head Ranger of what materials would be needed for different boxes, and a little write up of what we can do for each other and the county. I don't like to waste time or lose an opportunity. Later Christy in Sarasota, FL From: "ROGER & LINDA OSBORNE" rosborne"at"grnco.net I have only one question at this time. Are there any NABS members here in NE Arkansas,ie Greene, or Craighead Co..? It would be nice if we could get together and see what we can do about new bb trails like the great lady in Sarasota, Florida. Contact me if you are interested. Thanks ROGER OSBORNE GREENE CO, NE ARKANSAS OAK GROVE HEIGHTS rosborne"at"grnco.net From: "Michael Wheatley" sialia"at"cyberdude.com Congrats to Bruce. I contacted our local landfill, it is closed, regarding Bluebird boxes, and was told up front that it is not allowed. Mike in NW OH From: "Keith & Sandy Kridler" kridler"at"1starnet.com Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas These did not bite and five young girls from three different families got to see the beauty of these remarkable creatures. So when you are looking for places to install nestboxes enlist the aid of your local camp grounds as people from all over the country stop by for a night. This manager is getting famous for providing campers with the chance to watch flying squirrels coming to his bird feeders at night. There were three pairs of these squirrels around the office this week in three different "bluebird" boxes. Two pairs of bluebirds at the back of the camp ground. KK From: "St. Tikhon's Sem Libr" library"at"stots.edu Dear friends, I want to thank all those who have encouraged me regarding our rejuvenated trail. I'll let you know if there are any bluebird nestings when they happen. We've had bluebirds ever since our trail was started 15 years ago, but probably would have had more if I'd maintained the trail more diligently. I first learned about bluebird culture from an article in Science News around 1982 or 1983. At that time I had never seen a bluebird in my life (having lived 23 years in suburban Conn., plus 3 years each in urban Chicago and suburban Westchester Cty, NY and several summers in New Orleans LA). If I thought about it at all, I probably supposed they had become a rare bird that only a specialist would ever see. After I read the article, I contacted NABS. This was soon after I'd become a monk at The Orthodox Monastery of St. John the Theologian (in an hour SE of Cleveland OH in Hiram). I started a trail of 5-6 boxes and within 2 weeks of installing them, saw my first bluebird pair. Imagine my joy! (Probably theirs was even greater, at discovering that handy nest box!) I continued building Bb boxes here at St. Tikhon Monastery in rural eastern PA since coming here in 1986. We've had a bigger trail here, with some of the same experiences. When I first was putting up the trail, some said they hadn't seen a bluebird for 25 years and doubted we would see them -- but the birds appeared promptly when the houses were put up. One of the nicest bluebird benefits is when all the people are gathered in church on a Sunday, late morning, and there is a quiet moment in church,in between prayers or hymns, and suddenly I hear the unmistakable quiet song of the blues outside. Or it may happen on a weekday when just a few people are present. (This being a monastery, we spend about 4 hours or so in church every day.) Another is to show the young nestlings to visiting children or to the families of the seminarians. I've seen baby bluebirds make their first flight and I've watched as a bluebird family -- parents and young -- perched together peacefully on a wire late in the year, in Nov. or Dec., near the box they had used. I've been witness to bluebird joys, and yes, some bluebird tragedies. Will send any news about the bluebirds to the list. Juvenaly Date: Mon, 15 Jul 2002 08:29:26 -0700 (PDT) Hi all, I took down 11 of 21 nestboxes at Starve Hallow Lake this weekend because they will not be properly monitored. The individuals who have maintained and monitored the nestboxes during the week have relocated to Ohio the beginning of June. I live in Illinois during the week and return to Indiana on weekends. Through most of the year once a week monitoring is sufficient however, in the Spring and mid-June through mid-July waves of HOSP MUST BE CONTROLLED. I have not found anyone willing to monitor the trail so I am sadly phasing it out. I will continue to search for a monitor while concurrently looking for a new location for the displaced trail. This year, that part of the Indiana trail to date has had successful nesting as follows: 14 EABL nests 11 TRES nests 1 CACH nest The lake is full of purple martins and TRES therefore, there is a great number of purple martin houses that are now HOSP/EUST slums. Although that particular part of my Indiana nestbox trail has been very successful it has also been very high maintenence compared to the 12 nestboxes in two other locations in Indiana. I plan on keeping at least the the same number of total nestboxes (43 total: 33 in Indiana & 10 in Illinois) next year. Looks like Indiana's loss will be Illinois' gain. A first EABL egg was laid on Joly 15th in Illinois. There are
3 new EABL nests on my Indiana trail. I'm hoping that all three
have eggs in them by next weekend. Have a good day Bob Sitarski a.k.a The Doctor Jackson County Indiana ( 38.5244N 08.6023W ) & Clay County Illinois ( 38.4008N 08.82908W ) From: "Fawzi P. Emad femad <at> fpemad <dot> com Date: Tue, 06 Aug 2002 22:44:09 -0700 Hi, Thought I'd ask for advice before the list shuts down for vacation. I work as a seasonal park ranger. We have several nestbox trails in three of our parks. As far as I know, we have had no nest activity in any of the boxes for the past two years. I think we have about 80 boxes. Kind of amazing to strike out on all of them. I wanted to redo the trails last year, but the boxes had only been up for one year. It was decided to leave them in place this year to see if we'd have better success this year. We didn't, so I'll be asking to redesign the trail again. Does anyone have suggestions? I don't like the design of the boxes. The roof is steep with a large overhang. The entry hole is not very visible. Could this design cause the birds to reject using these boxes? Any help would be appreciated. Gail From: "Fawzi P. Emad femad <at> fpemad <dot> com Gail, where are the parks located? What is the area like? Is it clear grass, or forest, etc. Any other birds like house sparrows and starlings, or other cavity nesters? That would help a lot. Fawzi Fawzi Emad in Laytonsville, Maryland femad"at"comcast.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gail Townsend" gailtown"at"intercomm.com ... Date: Wed, 7 Aug 2002 22:47:39 -0700 (PDT) Gail, I have strong feelings about nestbox location. Three years ago I acquired a bluebid trail on a golf course. The boxes were not very well located and the results were poor. I have taken down some boxes and relocated others and the results have been like night and day. I now have high bluebird occupancy with a high fledge rate. My changes would be 1st to relocate the nestboxes to the best bluebird habitat and then possibly to make changes in the nestbox design. Dan Sparks --- Gail Townsend gailtown"at"intercomm.com wrote: Hi, Thought I'd ask for advice before the list ... Date: Thu, 08 Aug 2002 12:54:16 -0700 Linda Violett - Yorba Linda, Calif. Dan, can you expound on what, specifically, you looked for when deciding takedowns/locations, the design changes you made, any background info and the results. If there is not enough time for you to respond before the shutdown, it would be a good thread to continue during the off-season when the "faithfuls" like to swap ideas of what went right/wrong during the past season and what we'd do differently. Daniel Sparks wrote: I have strong feelings about nestbox location. ... Date: Thu, 08 Aug 2002 14:52:17 -0500 At 10:44 PM 8/6/02 -0700, Gail Townsend wrote: Hi, Thought I'd ask for advice before the list shuts down for vacation. ... I personally prefer nestboxes with lots of roof overhang--it protects from sun and rain. Regarding visibility of the entrance hole, birds manage to find holes in trees--I have used binoculars to find a natural cavity I know is being used, and cannot find the hole unless I see a bird going to it! Remember these birds can see very small insects on the ground, even with some grass obscuring the view. What is the habitat like in the parks--have any bluebirds been seen in the area? Kate Oschwald Paris, TX 100 mi NE of Dallas 33.6853N 95.6293W From: "BRIAN LEACU" brian_leacu"at"msn.com Recently returned from the southwest and was thrilled to see a flock of bluebirds just inside the entrance to Zion National Park in Utah. So now I'm rushing around setting up my brand new bb trail. Even though the wind was blasting my face with the previous days snow and I lost a glove fumbling around, I feel so gratified to have the 6 boxes set up. Yes, the City of Boston enthusiastically gave me permission to set up the trail. A local birder said he had seen some bb's there just recently. If I werethem , I would have migrated months ago. I'm hoping they will start roosting in the boxes immediately and "submit their leases" for the upcomingnesting season. And like I mentioned in earlier posts, this is ten minutes from my house. Wanted to mention to all of you that the boxes are paired (15 feet apart), and each pair is at least 300 feet from the next. Each box is 40 inches above a 4 foot high chain link fence on 3/4 " electrical conduit pipe. I've decided not to use baffles yet because I have to be sensitive to the appearance being a public park. The park is built on an old landfill dump, 75 feet high, no trees yet and extremely open. I'm hoping predators will be staying away because of this. Plus, I don'tthink raccoons can jump 40 inches from the top of the fencing to the boxes. I will be using a small light weight step ladder to monitor, should I be so fortunate. Can't wait...the days are getting longer!!! Brian. From: khussie"at"localnet.com Hello, Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2003 18:10:36 -0500 Hi eveyone on the list, From: "Phil Berry" phil4643"at"msn.com my first nest date is around march 15 here in nw florida, you
would certainly be ok until after that date. i too have some
left to put up, but am not yet worried (not too much, any way)
about them. hope to finish in a week or so. From: Lisa Bennett lisab"at"superdups.com ... From: KCBSP"at"aol.com Hi Lisa :) While it is good to get them up in the fall preferably so you don't run into this awful weather, you still have quite a bit of time. The bluebirds are around and will be checking out the boxes but more than likely nesting will only begin in mid to late March and into April. That still will be early in the nesting season. Hopefully we won't get too much more snow!! Kathy Clark, New Cumberland, PA Hi eveyone on the list, ... To: bluebird-l"at"cornell.edu On Thu, 20 Feb 2003 18:10:36 -0500 Lisa Bennett lisab"at"superdups.com ... Put them up just as soon as you can. But if you do not get them up for the first nesting you will have them up for the next one. When you do get them up, keep them up all year. They will use them at night in the winter time. Maynard Sumner http://mibluebirdsociety.tripod.com Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. Galatians 6:7 From: "Fawzi P. Emad femad <at> fpemad <dot> com As long as snow covers the ground, Bluebirds cannot nest because their hunting grounds are not available. They need insects to feed on before they can start to make nests. I think it will be safe to put up your boxes as soon as the ground is visible and thawed. Here in MD, this would happen normally around this time. But, we also have nearly two feet of snow on the ground! I am waiting to put up six boxes in my neighbors' yards. I wait till all the snow melts and the ground is soft so I can drive the posts for mounting the boxes. In your case, I think it will be a while before you need to worry, your season comes much later on in the year... You safely have at least one more month! Fawzi Fawzi Emad in Laytonsville, Maryland ----- Original Message ----- ... Date: Fri, 21 Feb 2003 08:05:07 -0600 At 06:10 PM 2/20/03 -0500, Lisa Bennett wrote: ... In my opinion, it is never too late. If there is a bluebird housing shortage in your area, then many pairs will not be able to start nesting when they normally would. Once your nestboxes are up they can start nesting, and even if it was late enough that they lost the chance for the first nesting, they still have an opportunity for one or two more attempts. Kate Arnold From: DottyRogers"at"netscape.net Gosh -- we've installed box poles in well-frozen ground, and we'd probably do it through snow, too. We use a 5-foot piece of identical 3/4" elctrical conduit and pound it through snow, then the two/three inches of frozen ground and on down; we use a sledge hammer. Doesn't take that much whamming. Esppecially now with some melting going on -- which I can attest to. (Broke through stream ice today following fisher tracks through the woods.) (Lots of fun.) Dot; eastern Mass From: MuskratBob"at"aol.com Hello List, I live on a golf course in Eastern Tn. I noticed that our BB boxes were falling apart and since they were all mounted on trees, the enterance holes were chewed out and most of the boxes had become storage bins for acorns, and hickory nuts as well as home to mice, ants and various other critters. I was just given the task of checking all of our boxes and making suggestions on how to improve as well as monitor the "new trail" next summer.I jumped at this opertunity right away. I just finished my initial report complete with ideas on locations of boxes as well as the number of boxes needed. I'm hoping that our village woodworkers will be gracious enough to supply what we need. I am suggesting that all boxes be made to NABS standards and equipped with entrance hole extender blocks as well as predator baffles below the box. Have I missed anything? Thanks, Bob in Loudon Tn. -- From: Bruce Burdett, blueburd"at"tds.net Bob, I suppose you'll make the point about putting houses on poles, and not using perches on the houses, and keeping them out in the open, and cleaning out after fledges, and regular monitoring, and all those basic things. I seem to recall that you're an experienced Bluebirder, so you know all this kind of thing anyway. Bruce Burdett, SW NH From: Sharon Kersten For my
presentations, I am compiling a list that provides reasons for people to
put up nestboxes. The more reasons I can provide, the better
the argument. I suspect this list already exists but I am unable
to locate it using my usual search methods. I would appreciate
a copy from From: Daniel Sparks,
b4bluebirds"at"yahoo.com Dan Sparks Brown County Bluebird Society Nashville, IN From: Elizabeth Zimmerman [mailto:elizaduck"at"charter.net] Many towns have a closed landfill that will usually provide ideal habitat for a bluebird trail. This fall, I'm planning on putting 15 boxes up on the one in our town. I only had to get approval from the first selectman and the transfer station operator, and they were thrilled with the idea. Landfills usually occupy many acres, often with water nearby. Most are closed now, and most have a clay cap on top (to prevent water infiltration), covered with topsoil seeded with grass to prevent erosion. Because of environmental requirements, trees are prevented from growing on top (as this would "puncture" the clay cap, allowing water to run through the garbage and carry contaminants to groundwater), so it's usually grassland. BUT unlike golf courses, it will seldom be mowed, and no pesticides and fertilizers will be used. It will usually have access (since vehicles have to come in for periodic inspections of monitoring equipment, methane vents etc.) It's usually on town-owned land. It is often adjacent to a transfer station, which will offer access to the public and security. It's usually removed from human habitation (because people don't often want to live near it, usually because of groundwater contamination), so it will have fewer HOSP, garbage-can raiding raccoons, and outdoor cats. A bluebird trail makes good use of what is usually an abandoned property with limited utility (since structures are seldom built there because construction would disturb contamination, and the landfill is constantly settling as garbage decomposes.) Bet Zimmerman, Woodstock Valley, CT http://www.sialis.org From: Bruce Burdett [mailto:blueburd"at"tds.net] Bet, et al, I have had two pairs of Bluebird boxes at our local closed landfill for several years now, and they've been very successful. The Road Agent, who also runs the recycling station (dump) and the landfill is delighted, and the dump patrons love to see the Bluebirds when they drop off their trash. Many have never seen one before, and are amazed !! The only concern is that the posts not puncture the critical membrane, and they don't even come close. The Road Agent even built and put up the houses himself, following the plans I gave him, and they are excellent (NABS-style). There has been no predation, partly because of the steady human traffic at the dump, and partly because of what I will call the " Urine Technique" around the bases of the posts. (I hope that my mention of this technique will not shock anyone's sensibilities and get me sacked.) Bruce Burdett, SW NH From: Nahanna2"at"aol.com [mailto:Nahanna2"at"aol.com] Hello: Problem: placed and promptly abandoned boxes by boy scouts in local park land... I am the new director of the bluebird program for this parkland. I am looking for models of programs and ideas to encourage scout troops to move beyond simply making the nest boxes and placing them and not following up with a program to monitor the boxes? I am now working with an eagle scout candidate to build 15 boxes. His adviser is not keen on making a "long term commitment" for the troop to follow up on the boxes. I understand that the scout is learning leadership for the eagle badge, but I want to see them learn about creating a program and some science and the bluebirds. I have seen this in my reading about trails and troops. If the boxes o up with no follow up, I will have to monitor these in addition to my 60 boxes! The advisor has mentioned working with other scouts to get other badges... I have taken down and repaired some 20 neglected (boy scout) boxes in two years of monitoring bluebird boxes in this area. Thank you! Warm regards, Nancy Nancy Hanna EdM California Bluebird Recovery Program Walnut Creek, Ca 94598 From: Maynard Sumner [mailto:m-r-sumner"at"juno.com] Here in Michigan the Scouts set boxes up along the Free ways without saying anything to MDOT. They do not go back and take care of them. I asked MDOT about taking care of the boxes. They said "Sure you can, but it will cost you $38 for each location." We can not pay to do all of this. The ones we are doing, we are doing like the Scouts did and not saying anything to MDOT about setting them up. Maynard Sumner Flint, MI From: George Smith [mailto:glsnj"at"yahoo.com] Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2005 7:45 AM Subject: Creative means to pay for a bluebird trail Hi folks, I was wondering if any of you have used or thought of a creative means to finance your particular bluebird My particular situation is this: I currently support 9 children (ranging in age from 24 to 4 ) and have limited funds to support "my" hobby. I haven't even started my bluebird trail and already I'm getting flak from my wife regarding the cost of making and maintaining bluebird houses around town. My thoughts here are to manufacture a simple sunflower seed/peanut feeder to sell on either ebay or through a web site which will help pay for my hobby... do any of you have thoughts about this, have you done something similar? Please let me know. George From: Lana Hunt [mailto:lanahunt"at"kcp.uky.edu] Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2005 8:21 AM Subject: Re: Creative means to pay for a bluebird trail George, I know I would buy one of your feeders. A thought, if you want more nest boxes is your local forestry service. I stopped in to sign some papers and mentioned bluebirds. They gave me 9 nest boxes that were made by either 4th graders or 4H? They are 1 inch+ thick wood, and pretty well made. They may need a little modification over time. You might obtain a grant from a University or Wildlife program to fund your project. That would of course require maintaining records. Keep us updated, it may be something we all could try. Lana From: Lawrence Herbert [mailto:lherbert"at"4state.com] Sent: Wednesday, July 27, 2005 7:39 AM Subject: free/cheap boxes George and Bluebirdsters: State Conservation agencies sometimes have free or inexpensive nest boxes too. I started bluebirding when the kids were toddlers and it was something I could do with them - 35 years ago now! I had very little / no money then. I found lumber from junk piles and discard piles. Today, instead of being less of that as we would think, there is more and more that we just throw away without reusing. I personally wouldn't put a bluebird trail up "in town." But that's just IMO. Good birding, Larry H. Joplin MO. From: Evelyn Cooper [mailto:emcooper"at"bayou.com] Sent: Wednesday, July 27, 2005 8:03 AM Subject: RE: free/cheap boxes You can also go to contractors and get some very beautiful scraps if you are We do have a trail on a school ground "in town" and they have Bluebirds. You may have more HOSP problems, but if you are willing to fight the battle, Evelyn Cooper, President From: Bet Zimmerman [mailto:ezdz"at"charter.net] Sent: Wednesday, July 27, 2005 10:22 AM Subject: RE: Creative means to pay for a bluebird trail Ah yes, bluebirding can get expensive! The boxes, poles, traps, mealworms etc. sure do add up. A (non-profit) organization donated boxes for a trail I set up at a closed local landfill. I named after one of their board members who had made hundreds of boxes and had fostered bluebird awareness. I know some Bluebird Societies have people "foster" or dedicate a box to an individual - what a great memorial/birthday/anniversary gift for someone who doesn't want to maintain/monitor box, or who doesn't have appropriate habitat for bluebirds but still wants to be involved in conservation! Some folks seem to do well selling a unique and WELL CONSTRUCTED, effective birding item that meets a niche need (e.g., sparrow traps, a suet feeder that starlings can't get into or a mealworm feeder that mockers can't raid) on E-bay. Of course that's a lot of effort too. Bet from CT From: Gretchen Hughes [mailto:lghughes"at"
joink.com
] Hello all, From: Keith & Sandy Kridler [mailto:txbluebirder"at"sbcglobal.net] Sent: Thursday, November 10, 2005 7:52 AM Subject: providing nestboxes to monitors Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas I don't keep too many "nice" looking nestboxes put together at this time of year but it only takes about 15 minutes to set up and make 6 boxes. Each girl got her nestbox and instructions on how to care for their bluebirds. We have been giving nestboxes away for years and not requiring them to send back any reports on what they fledge. They do have my contact numbers if they have problems. By going out and giving programs and asking questions of the groups I have found that nearly everyone knows someone near their yard that is already raising bluebirds. Back in the 1970's very few had ever SEEN a bluebird and most thought I was putting up nestboxes for Blue Jays. I have provided nestboxes at local parks where people go everyday for health reasons to walk their "mile". The best monitor's I have found walk past "their" nestboxes everyday checking them twice a week or more if they suspect a problem. If you sign a contract with a person or group and it only lasts a year you can see if bluebirds or other cavity nesters are using the trail and you can either move the nestboxes to another location or simply recruit another monitor if the trail is abandoned. Several years ago I helped 12 boy scouts and their scout master build 13 nestboxes in early spring. I ran into them at a scout jamboree and asked them if they got birds to nest in their boxes. ALL twelve of the scouts had BLUEBIRDS nest at least once this past summer, only the scout master did not get bluebirds. They laughed because they said he put his box up in "bad" Even if these scouts only monitor the nestboxes for a year or two you sometimes light a fire that will burn a lifetime in their hearts. You sometimes help bluebirds second hand when these people touch others and show them "their" bluebird boxes and the circle of life gets larger. KK Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas From: KCBSP"at"aol.com [mailto:KCBSP"at"aol.com] In a message dated 11/9/2005 4:51:19 PM Eastern Standard Time, lghughes"at"
joink.com
writes: From: Pauline Tom [mailto:ptom"at"austin.rr.com] Sent: Thursday, November 10, 2005 11:22 AM Subject: Organization sponsoring trail & furnishing nestboxes / NABS 2006 update Loren asked, Texas Bluebird Society's "Start With Five" pilot project furnished 5 nestboxes; funds for 5 sets of mounting hardware and 5 8" stovepipes; and, 5 pre-made Kingston Predator Baffle kits (everything except the stovepipe, for which we furnished funds). Basic conditions: public property in appropriate habitat for bluebirds; an "ambassador" available to assist (or the member becomes an "ambassador"); the interested individual makes the contacts to secure permission; a plan in place for monitoring; a willingness to control predators and non-native competitors; and, a willingness to submit an end-of-season report each year to our on-line Data Collection System. (TBS collects data from anyone in Texas for the TransTexas Nestbox Network. "Start With Five" made it possible to stretch our resources over a broad range; and,it also made it possible for the volunteer to experience bluebirding on a small scale. The project is on hold, waiting for a new volunteer to oversee the program. Pauline Tom From: Bruce Burdett [mailto:blueburd"at"verizon.net] Sent: Thursday, November 10, 2005 10:10 AM Subject: Re: On target, once more Keith, Bruce Burdett From: Evelyn Cooper [mailto:emcooper"at"bayou.com] Today, my husband and I traveled about 200 miles round trip to deliver some bluebird units (poles, guards and boxes) to Lake Bistineau State Park near Shreveport/Bossier City, LA. What a beautiful place. The units will be installed on 20 acres of land that will be mowed to perfection and it has a tree line all around it to place the boxes close enough for fledging. The ranger was so excited and said he would have them all up this afternoon after we left. Evelyn From: Evelyn Cooper [mailto:emcooper"at"bayou.com] Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 1:36 PM Subject: Re: Responsibility of feeding; slightly OT Sara Ann, your little story reminds me of some people I come in contact with that get all fired up to have a bluebird box. When they find out it is work, they loose interest and some just leave it there to anything that can take it. That is sad. Last year, one of our charter members who was 86 years old passed away. He was one of the hardest workers for our organization and the bluebirds you could ever meet. I wrote a "Tribute" for him for the newspapers. On the preface of the Article that the newspaper person wrote, he said a few words about me. He stated that he could always depend on me for news about the bluebirds and that my interest in these little birds "stays at fever pitch". He sure has that right. Going into the 9th year for me, I can't wait to get on the fourwheeler in a few minutes and check out all the goodies on my trail! It is really nice and warm here today. Evelyn From: Paula [mailto:PaulaZ"at"columbus.rr.com] Sent: Thursday, March 30, 2006 12:30 AM Subject: Powell Bluebird Project I am posting because I am excited about The Powell Bluebird Project. I coordinated this project, telling the city where to put boxes. Powell has installed 35 nestboxes in 5 different parks. OBS donated the boxes. The city provided the poles, baffles, and one enthusiastic employee to monitor the boxes weekly. They just got them all installed. They painted the baffles a dark green to match the other park accessories. It looks very nice. I am the project "manager" and will oversee monitoring and trail reports. My main work (as always) will be making certain boxes are HOSP free. Even though the city is donating this gentleman's time to monitor boxes, I also got a couple that I helped last year to become monitors for the park adjacent to their home. My goal is to get as many citizens involved as possible and to advocate responsible suburban bluebirding for residents in their own back yards. Although EABL haven't started building nests on my trail yet, I have a completed EABL nest in my yard - no eggs yet. Paula Z From: mrtony8 [mailto:philip.berry"at"mchsi.com] Sent: Thursday, March 30, 2006 6:07 AM Subject: Re: Powell Bluebird Project Good on ya, Paula. Sounds like what we all strive for, getting others involved. Some of us are getting along in age and I for one am constantly on the go talking up bluebirds to young people, hoping that one day one will ask to help me out on my trail. If not, when I can no longer do it, the trail will go to seed.
What Phil and Paula are doing is definitely the way to pursue your hobby. Same goes for where a baby bird comes from which brings up the question of which came first, The chicken or the egg! I mentioned a couple of weeks ago about a man coming to the house and bringing grand kids to build some nestboxes and bird house gourds. I ran into him at a program I gave yesterday for a Rotary club. He said they got bluebirds nesting in their new box in one week. The boys race to the nestbox first when they come to visit and they pester him to build MORE boxes. I got a call that a tour bus will stop by here Friday and they want to build 50 nestboxes. I better go dust off the saws. KK KK From: Jimmy Dodson [mailto:rocks_and_flies"at"hotmail.com] Sent: Thursday, March 30, 2006 8:24 PM Subject: Re: Powell Bluebird Project Nice story Keith. Since we placed various boxes over the winter on one of the properties we manage, basically in Raleigh now, we've gotten a number of comments and questions with positive interest. EABL's aren't our only target species with the boxes -- we're also utilizing habitat placement to select and other species specific designs/hole sizes. This property is a research, teaching, and demo and has a really high traffic use by people in the RDU area. We've been working on improving the educational components of signage and demonstrations, and the dept agreed with my push to use boxes/monitoring as an ed opportunity on the property. Just for an fyi update on this property... we specifically put up 7 boxes for EABL's the 3rd week of Feb. As of Mar 25th, 3 had nests under construction and 1 other had a completed nest with it's first egg. This is just creating more leverage for me to add boxes next year! Take care --J Jimmy Dodson From: plkldf"at"comcast.net [mailto:plkldf"at"comcast.net] Paul Kilduff From: Lynneridgeway"at"aol.com [mailto:Lynneridgeway"at"aol.com] Bad News-Good News! From: lviolett [mailto:lviolett"at"earthlink.net] When problems of public trails seem to be insurmountable, try hanging boxes: From: Keith & Sandy Kridler [mailto:txbluebirder"at"sbcglobal.net] Sent: Sunday, June 04, 2006 9:09 AM Subject: Finding a location for urban nestbox trails Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas Next you see flood plain areas as these are often maintained as nature trails, walking trails or just mowed park areas. Some are called green belts and these due to their size and high water washing out fencing are normally not locked up and police patrol but there are seldom valuable assets in these areas for them to worry about. Groups gather for soccer, baseball there are often sticks and rocks to throw in these areas. Drug use can sometimes be a problem after dark. ASK what the highest flood stage was in these areas BEFORE you install nestboxes. In the north ice will force you to remove these boxes after nesting season and you need to re-install them in spring. Then you often see massive cemeteries from the air. You won't have people walking through the cemetery carrying baseball bats or golf clubs. Most are fenced off and there is security of sorts at many of the larger ones. Today you can Google any city and pull up a satellite map and locate large estates, large corporations that would have excellent habitat just by sitting at your computer! You can determine whether the area will support bluebirds, chickadees or Tree Swallows. In many states now about the only large bodies of trees (forests) you will see will be inside the city limits or they will be growing in flood plains or on the steep slopes of mountains or hills. KK From: Kelley Family [mailto:herbsho"at"centurytel.net] I live in a rural area, county population 25,000. A friend has just offered the use of two farms, one 200A and the other 400+A. From: Keith & Sandy Kridler [mailto:txbluebirder"at"sbcglobal.net] I was reading an interesting series of letters and articles early this month of a 2,500 acre Missouri farm where a "care taker" was allowed to add nesting boxes. From: Tree Greenwood [mailto:doctree"at"crosslink.net] Sent: Saturday, July 01, 2006 1:09 PM Subject: Re: New farmland Bluebird trail On Thu 29 Jun 2006 at 10:37, Herb Kelley <herbsho"at"centurytel.net> wrote, in part: Hi, Herb and everyone, Farms are GREAT for Bluebirds! I do _NOT_ have a Bluebird trail but I live in a rural area and most of my nestboxes are located on or adjacent to farmland. From my point of view, there are only a couple of considerations: Along the edge of cultivated fields or pastures is close to ideal. Most 'woods' on farmland means 'managed timber' which isn't suitable for Bluebirds and the edges of the woods are likely shrubby and attractive to attract House Wrens. The edges of grain and bean fields are great for Bluebirds. Around here, a buffer of mowed grass around fields is common and perfect for placing nestboxes. You will probably need to mow or 'weed-wack' around them for the farmer since he will probably use a brush hog behind his tractor to keep the field edges mowed. If you don't put up too many, cutting the grass and weeds away from the poles can be done by hand like I do... Two of my nestboxes that are usually occupied by Bluebirds are next to corn fields. I see EABB build their first nest when fields are plowed. If the corn is cut green and ground for silage, the fields will be open again by the time the EABB parents are feeding their second brood. Raccoons love corn. So do field rats and mice... Soybeans alternate with corn in crop rotation, adding nitrogen to the soil that's consumed by corn. Soybean fields aren't suitable forage for EABB _BUT_ a buffer strip of mowed grass around the fields to naturally control weeds is perfect forage for Bluebirds. It's just a long strip rather than open field but still provides plenty of food. Fewer predators in the soybeans, too. Hay fields can vary depending on rainfall and how often they're cut. Cutting the field opens great forage but between cuttings, hay fields aren't suitable for EABB. I've personally had poor results getting EABB to nest next to hay fields _BUT_ it's great for Tree Swallows that hunt flying insects above the grasses. Bluebirds can still get some forage along the edges of roads so it's worth a try but odds are that the box will attract TRES. For me, that's not bad. Stay away from grain feeders and barns. They attract and house House Sparrows and Starlings. Pastures are fantastic habitat for EABB but pose problems. Cattle and their droppings attract EABB food. Problems? Livestock rub against posts and can knock down EABB boxes. The fence lines are convenient for placing nestboxes but fenceposts and barb wire can be predator highways and launching pads. Try to use tall telescoping posts. Now that I've written that advice from so many others, I'll admit that I've placed boxes on fence posts. EABB love them and usually fledge a brood, especially if the fence line, roadside and drainage ditches are regularly mowed. If a drainage ditch is typically filled with weeds, tall grass and litter, it's a protected route for predators to travel. Also true if the fence is covered with vines or tall grass and weeds grow up under the wire. > The 400+A is also in production, 1/2 in woods. That lane is probably mowed grass, a great place for nestboxes. If you talk real nice, maybe one of the farmer(s) will let you borrow his John Deere Gator once a week to run the back side of your trail that's not near a road. If so, you can easily take along a weed-wacker and supplies. > Will these crops be detrimental to Bluebirds? Definitely not. Unfortunately, some farms use a lot of nonspecific pesticides that can leave the habitat devoid of insects. Be sure to ask. I'm fortunate to be surrounded by Beechy Amish Mennonite farmers who respect the environment. > Concern about drawing HOSP. ... HOSP will definitely be a problem around farm buildings and feeder lots but are less likely to be a problem around the fields. If you do find HOSP competition out there, a Van Ert trap will quickly solve the problem because there aren't many cavities in the open. With no other place to nest, HOSP aren't wary like they are around built-up areas. Get the one 'dispersed' HOSP pair in a large open area and you probably won't have a problem for the rest of the season. > Do not know enough about farm trails to begin to ask questions and Try putting a nestbox on the dam side of ponds. I tolerate long commutes in rush-hour traffic so I can live in the country. I love the fresh country air... even right after farmers spread manure over the fields. I love the birds, many more species than in the city. Farms are great places for Bluebirds. Read some of the early writings about Bluebirds, farmer's friends that help to naturally control insects. Take care, R J 'Tree' Greenwood From: Bet Zimmerman [mailto:ezdz"at"charter.net] Duane Rice mentioned that the Wal-mart where he works (TN) took action to remove HOSP nests. Also they sponsored his trail! Good suggestions from Duane on the subject of trail sponsors [Duane – the list wasn’t copied on our emails, so I’ve excerpted that part here] On the subject of sponsors: A lot of small mom and pop hardware stores in more rural communities sell most of the items needed to set up boxes properly. Most are easy going and friendly folks, who love nature. The also need to make a living. I suggest appraoching them with the idea of setting up a display with a box(NABS approved design, of course) , mounted on a metal pole, with a stovepipe predator guard, literature, etc. All of the items needed must be in stock, or alternatives (PVC), so that interested customers leave the store with everything they need (knowledge included) to get started. Giving a program in the store (if possible) or somewhere in the community, gets people excited, and gives them the most importatnt tool of all, KNOWLEDGE. Just food for thought for anyone out there reading this thread. Think ahead to next spring and have it all together when you make your pitch. The rewards are priceless. GOoD luck! From: Robert Barron [mailto:rebarron"at"gmail.com] Sent: Monday, July 17, 2006 7:18 PM Subject: Re: getting someone to sponsor a trail Hi group, It never pays to underestimate what corporations will do for free or minimally expensive good PR. I've been seeing articles about how Walmart is trying to improve their "Green" factor and reduce their costs while reducing their impact on the environment by reducing the amount of plastic packaging, excess paper padding etc. Most of it gets thrown away before they accept returns and only increases their shipping costs, stocking efforts etc. We all could learn by Keith Kridler's personal committment to "talking to and educating people" I'm going to give it a try this weekend. I know it's going to be too hot to fish, I don't like golf, and too cold at home. Rob Barron-warrenton, Virginia Continued in Part 3 |
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