One good part about
being very meticulous and passionate about making sure the Bluebirds can nest safely is that they may return in fall and winter. This has been the case here ever since I started putting out nestboxes, and made Eastern Bluebirds a year-round delight for me. I am aware that I am lucky and spoiled but I can also tell you that nesting season is creating tense times in this household. Anyways, with colder weather they are showing up again, and some still have the baby specks showing through. I like to pick individuals, and one of the girls looks like she has very pronounced “jowls”.
It is quite wonderful
seeing the Bluebirds back here roughly one and a half months after the last brood fledged. It’s not all of them but a larger group, and you can still see traces of the baby feathers on some. I am not sure how many individuals are in these photos but it’s males and females. The females seem to have the paler than usual appearance that their mom has too (it is one of the things I recognize her by). These were all done in the evening, so the light is a bit meh. But I hope I get many more opportunities with this lovely smurf family.
Nestbox news: Exercise time!
The babies are now 15 / 16 days old. They get fed constantly, Gayle and Mr. Business must be exhausted. But they are doing a great job, the babies have grown a lot in the last couple of days, and yesterday, they started to exercise their wings. They are now becoming very adorable as they become more aware of their surroundings. There is constant preening going on too to open the sheaths and get those feathers ready for the big day. Now again, the larger nestbox size is to their advantage because they have more space to spread their wings.
Nestbox news: Sitting tight
Gayle and Mr. Business are doing a great job raising their four babies from the third brood. It is always interesting to see what they bring them, and this time around I see lots of larger maggots, spiders and flying insects. This little scene happened a day ago. He is always eager to feed the babies, and while he gives her part of the loot here, he also still goes in. They have a little interaction, and then a warning call can be heard from outside. They hunker down and sat it out (took a couple of minutes), and when another call is audible, they both leave. The babies are 8 and 7 days old today, and I removed the Wren guard. I am sure Gayle will appreciate it, she loves to peek out. Everything looks good so far. I am so happy.
Nestbox news: Everybody is thriving
The temperatures are very lovely at the moment, not too hot, not too cool. The garden is visibly regaining juice and strength, and the Bluebird babies are thriving. I was so happy to see that the fourth egg hatched yesterday in the morning too. I hope with only four, the runt will quickly catch up. Also, believe it or not, I am still fascinated and enamoured watching this whole process even if it is the third time this season. Bluebirds are just so charming and entertaining. Here it looks like Gayle does not really like Mr. Business to come in and feed the babies. But at the same time, she is also quickly following him when he leaves. He does get his alone time with te babies too, though.
Nestbox news: Welcome, brood 3!
I suspected that hatching would happen soon when I saw some marks on the eggs late yesterday. And this morning at around 6, the babies started hatching. This is brood 3 for Gayle and Mr. Business. The babies from the second clutch are also still around and I wonder if maybe this time they will help raising the babies. The Wren guard is still in place even if I have not heard a Wren in forever. We had awful heat here in the last couple of days but today, it broke, and I actually ave the windows open. Here’s to a smooth rest of August.
Update August 10 - this morning, the last baby hatched as well.
hatching Eastern Bluebirds in nestbox
Nestbox news: Four for three!
Gayle has continued to lay eggs in the last couple of days. Today, she did not, which means that the third clutch of the season will have four eggs. She will now start to incubate. Mr. Business brings her the occasional snack and the babies from the last brood are also still hanging around. I am leaving the Wren guard up for good luck even if I have not heard or seen a Wren since we brought the babies to the rehabber. (The rehabber told me today they are doing great.) Maybe once it is removed, the second clutch will help feeding the last set of babies to get them strong faster. I like how the nest looks this time around, a very elegant paler grass nest.
Gayle and Mr. Business
have begun to bring their babies back to the yard to show them the amenities (the mulberry tree next door is apparently still carrying as you can see on Gayle’s chest and very popular with all the birds here). I am not entirely sure how many are with them but I saw at least three so far. This means they are now more present here, and with that, more able to defend their nestbox. They have been frequently going in all weekend, excitedly exclaiming and taking things out. I find it funny that they still do their little rituals even for the third brood. The babies that I saw looked great, and to my surprise one even made it to the camera. It looks so comparatively small that I think it might be the runt. It does have a lot of character 😁
Nestbox news: Good things need time
Four of the five Bluebird babies of the second brood have fledged over the last couple of days. The runt is still in the box, but hopefully, he will leave today, too. He has grown a lot, practises the wings and is taken care of by the parents. Here is a little clip of the middle three leaving. They all did late in the day, including the first one, and I did not manage to take photos of their first flight. The box is stained with mulberry, a poop sac left a smear on the lens and there are blowfly larvae in the nest too. I cannot wait to clean the box.
I spent a lot of time waiting for the fledge, and spent an entire day away from the computer, which was actually nice. There are new pictures coming but I need a bit of time to go through them.
Update: The runt took a glorious first flight this morning, the box is cleaned and maintained (I added a little mesh on the bottom to keep the nest slighly above the ground so blowfly larvae have it harder) and I rehung it in hopes for a third brood.
Nestbox news: The wreturn of the little terror
I have’t posted an update in a bit, so today is a good day. The babies are now 11 / 12 days old. Their eyes are open and their feathers are coming in, They grow by the minute thanks to Gayle and Mr. Business feeding them pretty much constantly. I was surprised to see them even feeding them mulberries but I was glad to see it too because the weather has been very hot and the mulberries I guess provide lots of moisture. When the last baby was 7 days old, I took the Wren guard off the box. It is recommended to take it off between day 5 and 10 after hatching. Then, the babies are big and heavy enough so that the Wren does not pose a threat anymore. Well, and yesterday, the Wren returned to check out the box. I edited the video a bit to make it shorter, but the Wren pretty much got in, tried to poke the babies and on the second try actually tried to yank one out. Thankfully, the baby was big enough so there was no way the Wren could finish the deed. The Wren in the other box has laid egg 2 by now. I hope that somehow between the Bluebirds fledging and Gayle starting nest 3, the Wren brood will keep them so busy that they don’t venture out again to check for nests. I will of course attach the Wren guard again too and hope it does it’s magic a second time.
Nestbox news: Day 4
A happy Father’s Day to all dads and father figures out there, including my own, a happy Juneteenth to everybody, and some nestbox news. The babies are now 4 days old. The weather has cooled down to lovely temperatures, the parents are finding lots of food in our garden, and things look great. I will keep the Wren guard up until day 7, just to be on the safe side. I am so happy this works.
Nestbox news: We have a hatchling!
Today was my calculated hatch day for Gayle and Mr. Business' brood 2, but the she was off the nest a lot due to extremely hot and humid weather, so I wasn't sure. But two hours ago, the first baby hatched. Welcome, little one, I hope your siblings follow. 💙
The House Wren also made it through the day with her three eggs. She got some extra shade by a William & Cate wedding day umbrella I got in London when they got married.
The BB babies
are now confident enough to fly around the yard by themselves and also visit the feeders. There is at least one male (you can tell by him already having more blue feathers than the girls). Gayle has laid her fourth egg today, and so far, the Wren guard seems to work too. The next couple of weeks will be fun with loads of babies coming to the backyard.
Nestbox news: Oh yes!
Yesterday was the day, Gayle started her second brood, and added another egg this morning. As soon as the egg was laid, I put a Wren guard on the box to keep the tiny destroyers out of there. It is like a visor for the nextbox that hides the entrance hole from sight, so that the Wren does not see it and thus, will not explore it and destroy eggs or babies. Since the BB has an egg in the box, she is bonded with it and will overcome any possible fear of the guard. Only the BBs know that there is a nest there, so it gives a bit of safety. We will see how that goes. The BBs have one advantage - they have at least four of their first babies around that can possibly help to defend. The guard will stay on the box until the babies are about 5 days old. Then they are too big and heavy to be drug out by the Wren. And here is a pic of two of the first babies with Dad at the feeder!
Nestbox news: Ready for round two.
The babies have fledged on May 14, and in the last few days, the parents have started to bring them back to the yard to introduce them to the feeder and amenities. At the same time, Gayle has started to build another nest. During the time after fledging, a Bluebird box is pretty much left unattended and thus, vulnerable to other birds claiming it. A House Wren that is nesting in the area has discovered it and explored. And two nights ago, went in and started tossing the newly started BB nest. All night I was trying to think about what I could do. Then in the morning, I watched this scene going down. First thing in the morning, the Wren came back, but this time, Mr. Business saw it and took care of business. Gayle continued to build afterwards, and the Wren has not returned. As soon as she lays her first egg, I will install a Wren guard, which is basically a visor for the box that disguises the entrance hole from view. Theoretically, only the BBs know it is there. Since the Wren was already in, I have no idea if this will work, so I have to hope for the best. But the whole family is around, including three babies (that I saw so far) who stay close by the box and will hopefully defend it.
A happy sight
this morning - Gayle and Mr. Business are bringing the babies closer and I was lucky to get a little glimpse of one of them getting fed by Dad. I am not sure how many are there, sometimes not all of them make it in the wild. Gayle has ramped up her building efforts this morning too and is quickly filling the box. I am glad they hang around more now and I hope the Wren stays away. Have a great Wednesday!
Gayle and Mr. Business
have been teaching their babies how to live and survive in the world, and they have started to bring them to the backyard. I have heard them begging and saw some glimpses but they are still keeping them up in the trees. Gayle has also started to build another nest yesterday. I hope to see the babies up close soon too.
Nestbox news: What goes in must come out... and in!
The babies are five days old and have grown steadily thanks to the constant stream of food brought by mom and dad. And what goes in, must come out. When a baby is fed, it usually relives itself right after. In the beginning, the parents will eat the fecal sac, apparently it contains nutrients that the babies cannot digest yet.
The most exciting thing
this week for me was watching the Bluebird family raise their babies. Wednesday night, temperatures dropped to below zero, and when I saw the parents bringing dried mealers in the box, I rehydrated some of them in boiling water and after cooling, mixed them with the dried ones to help them a bit on that frosty morning. There is a constant coming and going, and Gayle and Mr. Business are bringing all kinds of insects to feed the babies, and apparently, we have some icky stuff crawling around here 😆
Here is Mr. Business in all his glory. There will be more nest videos soon too, I just need some time! Have a great Friday - it looks like frost is over!
Nestbox news: The clutch is complete
Yesterday at her usual time, Gayle laid egg number five. she spent the night in the box, and today it was clear that she is done with laying and incubating now. During incubation, she will spend a lot of time in the box, warming the eggs evenly with her brood patch, and also turning them so they all develop evenly. Mr. Business will come occasionally to bring her a snack, and sometimes she leaves to get a bath, drink some water or eat. This will continue for the next two weeks. I started a little timelapse when she went into overdrive building, you can see the video below. I have started another timelapse for the next steps.
