Time to start bluebirding thread number 4

As the sky cleared, the detail improved.

Here are three in a short series.

Number two

Number three

Make that four

And finally, Mama

Wonderful pics Dave!!

Mama is really lovely!

They are wonderful...I could look at them all day!

Beautiful pics Dave!

Marilyn

Beautiful photos!!! Watching my boxes, hoping
we will have a pair this year.

Well, we got the second egg today and Papa is all over himself, bringing mealworms to Mama. You'd think this was his first time but I know he has done this for at least five years (three nests per year). When he's not feeding her he is on her back, making sure her eggs will be fertile. I have two or three pretty good sequences of him doing that.

Here is the next shot.

Oh! Here is one from yesterday.

Very nice!

I love hearing and seeing this story develop.

That last shot is such a graceful one!

This almost makes me want to get a nesting box...almost! Great shots, Dave!

Dave, At what point do the bluebirds stay in the box at night? Do they have to have an egg first? We see lots of activity around both houses, but don't know for sure whether they are just playing or serious. What time of day do you look into the box? I'd like to check to see what they're doing, but am afraid of frightening them off.

My blues have three nestings each season and she lays four eggs each time. Very predictable. Others report that their blues have larger broods.

She will begin sitting (or is it setting?) on the eggs only after the last one is laid. If she sat on them from the beginning, incubation would begin and the first one laid would be hatched four (or more) days before the last one. Since it only takes 17 days from hatching to fledglng, you can imagine what a growth advantage the first hatchling would have over his siblings. This way, they usually all hatch within hours of each other and each has a better chance to fend for himself in the nest.

For about a week before she lays the first egg, my female goes into the nestbox a dozen or more times a day, but it is usually to arrange the nest. Bluebirds make a very neat cup-shaped nest and folks who have video cams in their nestboxes report that she is very detailed in her preparation. When the male goes in it is usually to check on her progress. A NABS approved birdhouse is only about four inches wide and four inches deep, so there isn't a lot of room in there for the both of them. When one goes in the other usually comes right out. When she begins incubation, he will bring her food, especially if it is cold outside and she is reluctant to leave the nest.

I leave the nestbox up year 'round but as far as I know, my birds have never spent the night in the nestbox, but I have heard of many birds that do, especially on those cold nights up north. They report that as many as half a dozen will crowd in together to escape the cold.

When the birds hatch, the female will spend the next several nights on the nest, brooding. She will spread her wings and honker down close to the babies to keep them warm. They are born with little or no fuzz on their bodies. After about a week she will no longer stay overnight in the nestbox.

My female laid her first egg at 9:00 a.m, day before yesterday. I put the sparrow spooker up and it obviously bothers her and she has laid the second and third eggs yesterday and today,at 10:00 a.m. She usually goes into the nest several times before she actually lays an egg. For the first egg of each brood I check each time she goes in and out of the nestbox, but after that, since she is so predictable, I just wait until about 10:00 beore I bother to look.

Bluebirds are very tolerant of humans. I check on mine about three times a day until the babies are about 12 or 13 days old. After that, iif you open the box you might cause them to prematurely fledge. I sing or whistle as I approach the nestbox and if she is in there, she will usually fly out. If you open the box and she is on the nest, just close it quickly as she may be laying an egg.

As I said, the male will usually be perched nearby and from time to time he may take food to the female in the box. He will not spend the night in the nest, even if the female does. As soon as the eggs hatch, both parents are involved in feeding the hatchlings. When they fledge, the parents take them into the woods for training. After a couple of weeks, the female will break away and build another nest (this time much quicker than the first), and the male will take over exclusive care and feeding of the fledglings. In about a week to 10 days, the fledglings will follow him to the deck and ultimately hang around the meal worm feeder. When they are about 30 days old he will stop feeding them entirely.

This is probably more information than you wanted. But it is hard for me to give short answers.

Also, I find it frustrating that with my fancy cameras I can focus in on a gnat's whisker at 20 feet, but I can't get a good in-focus macro shot of the eggs in the nestbox. The shot below was taken this morning. At least you can see that they are blue. I fully expect that she will lay one more egg tomorrow and begin incubation on Sunday.


Dave

This message was edited Mar 24, 2008 3:16 PM

Dave,

Beautiful pics! Wonderful shots! Love seeing the pics and stories of the Bluebirds!

Thanks for sharing!

Marilyn

Those eggs are beautiful !

Thanks for the information Dave!

Hey Dave.

Maybe it's not you or the camera, but your lens?

I realize that you could be rolling your eyes right now!!! But if it happens all the time maybe something is just not right.

Dave..thank you for all the info...you have answered a lot of my questions! Do you know if the spooker has ever caused the BB to abandon the nest once she has laid the first egg? I have read and know that you had to tie some of your stringes back for awhile, have you let them all down now? You can't give too much info..I am a noob! Thanks again for this thread!

Mrs Ed: There's nothing wrong with my lenses. It's just that they won't focus closer than about 8 feet and I don't have a really good macro lens. The macro lenses I do have are fine for shooting flowers, which is what I got them for, and I have several old P&S digitals that have macro features on them, but haven't found one that really does the job I want to do. You see, in many ways I am still learning.

Incidentally, I want to thank you again for the titmouse poster. I had mine done at Wal-mart and then had it nicely framed. I just got it back from Michael's and they did a wonderful job. It really looks nice hanging in the foyer.

Dellrose: I am a member of several bluebirding forums and this is a topic that is discussed a lot. I have never heard of bluebirds abandoning a nest because of a spooker after the first egg was laid and more important, no cases where the spooker failed to deter the HOSP. The blues think they can defend themselves but they are no match for the HOSP, in a fight inside the nestbox. And beginning today or tomorrow, Mama will be in there alone, 24-7. The results of a nestbox raid are usually deadly and I have never heard of a bluebird winning the fight. So as a responsible bluebird host, I treat them as I would children and put the spooker up, despite their protests.

I have only let two of the six strips down and the blues are still tugging on it when the wind moves the strips, but they have accepted it, altho from time to time they still cast some evil looks my way. I will gradually let all of the strips down if the wind ever dies down. Here is a shot from a few minutes ago. As you can see, he has accepted it but still gets anoyed when it slaps him. You can also see the other stips still tied back.

Beautiful pictures, as always. I have question on your nest box. I see that the hole is strengthened with another layer of wood. I put up three nest boxes last year and saw two of them get "altered" by somebody out there. Not sure who. The hole started out a circle and now it's shaped more like a crescent pointing downward (like a frown). Maybe I should have strengthened the nest box?

Probably woodpeckers. You do need to watch the size of the hole. It should be 1 1/2 inches for blues and if it is enlarged it may become accessable to larger birds, like cowbirds. This box is NABS approved and I think the reason for the double layer is to keep long beaked birds, like starlings a little farther away from the nest. Of course, it also provides a thicker layer for the woodpecker to cut through and if it does become tattered and otherwise shopworn, the outside piece can be replaced. . Notice also that there is no perch. Perches seem to attract HOSP and the blues don't need them.

Well, Mama did lay her fourth egg this morning and apparently has decided to begin incubation immediately. She stayed in the nestbox for more than an hour. I just went out to check on her and after she flew, I did manage to get a picture of the four eggs.

Papa now has to start about 13 days of guard duty. I will post a few of him from this morning.

Dave

OK Here is Papa from a few minutes ago.

Awww, I love that guy.

Second of three

When he flies, he gives no warning as to direction.

Mama early this morning, before she went on maternity leave.

One more of Papa, ever watchful.

After all the beautiful pics, I'm embarrassed to put this on here but what the heck!!! here's one of our little guys this morning....we've got to get the bluebird boxes up!! Good birdwatching day to you...Deb

This shot is similar to the diving shot I posted several pictures above. This one was also taken yesterday, four hours after the first one. The sun was higher, so the detail is a lot better.

Dave

As good as it gets!!

Wowee Dave. That's quite spectacular!

Amazing shots Dave!!!

Hi all. I'm just thrilled to have discovered you all. I live way up north 10 miles south of Buffalo. Yes Buffalo. And yes we still have snow, although with 3 days of temps in the high 30s the snow is melting. I just love the bluebird pics, and am waiting not so patiently for the bbs to arrive back here. I put out a bluebird box last year with much success, although it was late in the season - 5 eggs hatched the first week of June. Four hatched, and were banded. Hoping to see them this season.

Hi OP, Welcome to the Bird Watching forum!

That was a great success!! Keep us posted on this years BB's and be sure to stop in here often!

Pelle

OP who banded them?

Hi Mrs. Ed. A rep. of the New York State Bluebird Society banded them at 10 days.