A new bluebird thread

Another break, after the 1:00 pm feeding. This shot taken from about 150 feet. Again, with the 600mm.

The nestlings demand food every 15 minutes or so. When the meal worm bowl is empty, they resort to the more traditional diet.

Here Papa is bringing a beak full, but actually, the female is doing most of the feeding.

Papa spends a lot of his time on lookout, constantly scouring the sky, no doubt looking for the hawks.

I have made friends with several of the female cardinals. They apparently have chicks in their nest and seem desperate for food. They can't get into the meal worm cage so I put some out in the open for them. I stand about four feet away to keep the mockers away and the cards come right to it, so long as I am standing still. The males are still too leery, so they go for the sunflower seed on the patio below. This shot from yesterday.

And this one from the day before.

OK, a couple more bluebird shots and I'll quit for tonight.

Another.

This one of him taking off will be my last.

Wow so many wonderful shots! I've always loved the female Cardinals. Thanks Dave!

Nice series Dave

What awsome pictures.

Thanks everyone. Al, you may have noticed that I got another Canon 300mm f4.0L IS lens. I was seriously considering the new II model, despite the ridiculous price increase, but it was supposed to have been released in November, then March and as of today, it still hasn't been released. This shot was taken with my new used copy.

As was this one.

And this one.

My five nestlings are due to fledge Saturday, or possibly Sunday. I hope Saturday since I have to go out of state on Sunday and it would be the first time I have missed seeing them fledge since I started hosting in 2004.

Here are some side shots with the 600mm, as the parents approach the nest box with food for the chicks.

On this one I barely stopped her before her feet hit the box. (shutter speed was 1/8000sec)

This message was edited May 26, 2011 10:58 PM

As Red would say, "poop patrol". Very hard to hold focus when shooting wide open and he is flying right toward you. (This also with the 300mm).

I rather like this shot.

Another favorite. I really like the birds but wish I had blurred the pear tree in the background a bit more. Maybe I can Photoshop it a tad.

Great shots Dave! I hope you don't miss the fledging.
That last shot is so sweet!

Thanks Pelle. Here's my last one for tonight. Papa striking a classic pose.

Oops! The one I got WAS another 2.8 model. I don't know why I said 4.0.

Senior moment, no doubt.

None of mine went today either, David. I sat out on the deck all day with cameras aimed at the nest box from three different angles, but like yours: lots of peeking but no one really trying to get out. Here is a typical shot.

I am sure they will go tomorrow and it's killing me that I will miss it. I actually made a 1 1/4 inch hole reducer that I was going to attach over the entrance hole to keep them from fledging until Monday. But I have always tried to do what was best for the birds and although I tried, I couldn't think of a single reason why staying an extra day cramped in that four inch box would be in their best interest --in fact, considering the 90-plus degree temperatures we are expecting, it might be hazardous to their health.

Since my reasons would have been totally selfish, I will just let nature take its course. I am sure they can make it without me.

This curious song sparrow came by several times to see what was going on.

And the mockingbirds were there constantly. They are a real nuisance and I am not sure how they will behave tomorrow when the birds fledge. I chased them all day and seriously, I think if there was one thing I could do to help with the fledging, it might be to chase the mockers away, and possibly the hawks. I haven't seen a hawk in several days, but the mockingbirds chase the bluebirds constantly. When the little ones pop out of the nest box, they may fly in any which direction and if the adults are not there to guide them, it would be easy for them to get confused and land in someone's yard where there is a cat.

This is the female mockingbird with the deformed "cross-bill" beak.

Dave,

My group must have fledged late yesterday afternoon or early this morning. I did not see any of them leave but the parent birds were at the nestbox with food and cleaning duty. I thought I had another day.

So it is cleanup time and preparing for the next nesting.

Good luck on your. I hope that you get some photos.

David

You are so right, Kim. Thank you for catching that. I put the pic up in such a hurry I really didn't look that closely. I do have a lot of song sparrows but the bluebirds do not tolerate them as well as they do the house finches. Maybe because the song sparrows like to steal meal worms and the finches never do. By the way, we have a house finch nest in a hanging basket on the front porch with two eggs.

Incidentally, all five of my bluebirds fledged yesterday while we were gone. I knew they would because they were really trying to get their bodies further out by 9:00 am, but we were scheduled to leave before 9:00 and "She who must be obeyed" would not grant me another half hour. We got back home an hour before dark and the adults were waiting. I suspect they had a rough time trying to round up the fledges and little time to hunt for grasshoppers and the like. The mockingbirds were waiting too so I put the meal worms out in an open dish where the bluebirds could grab it fast and stood close enough to shoo the mockers away. I shot pictures in the general direction that the adults flew with the worms and when I looked on my monitor I had managed to find two of the five high in the trees. But they appear to be scattered in at least three different trees. I would like to see them gathered together so the adults could better supervise them.

I cleaned out the nest box and Papa has already gone inside to check it out. I suspect he is worried that the house sparrows will claim it and so I expect the bluebird female will start a new nest in a very few days if only to establish their claim.

I spent the better part of the morning feeding the adults and then trying to follow them with the camera to where they had the fledglings hidden. During the night they had moved them to a line of tall trees at least 700 feet from my deck. I finally found them near the top of this gum tree. Apparently one was lost while fledging, because I only see Mama and four of the fledglings. My picture is nowhere near as good as Rose's, but keep in mind, I could barely see this particular tree with the naked eye. This at 1200mm.

I was worried for a time because the parents were not coming for meal worms very often. I feared maybe several had been lost, but as I watched them through the camera, I saw that they were hunting insects in the field nearer the trees. Here is a shot of Papa when he did make the long flight to the deck for meal worms.

Their five babies fledged Sunday and today, five days later, the female is already beginning a new nest. It will be her second clutch and Papa's third of this season. Wonder if they will go for another after this one. Guess I should deal with this one before I worry about the next.

Beautiful day today. Bright sunshine; the kind that lets you get crisp pictures.

Papa's blue coat looked very sharp. With the heat we have had lately (102 degrees yesterday, 97 the day before) they will start to molt early. Hate to see that.

Here's Mama. Not very colorful but a tireless worker.