One Bluebird Egg in a New Nest

First Brood Totals for Prairie Hope trail in Pepin:

Eggs:           3
Chicks:        3
Fledglings:  0


Box #1:  Bluebirds are have built another nest and put an egg in it up on the Prairie Hope farm.

Box #2:  empty

5 Tree Swallow Eggs

As I drove up to Box #1 on SR 25, I could see the head of a Tree Swallow poking out of the bluebird box - the one with too much ventilation.

Maybe we'd get lucky and there'd be eggs inside.

Sure enough.  Five Tree Swallow eggs.

Box #2 in the parking lot had another House Sparrow nest.

Box #3:  empty - 3 Bluebird Chix fledged

Kings Hwy Boxes

The First Brood totals in the 2 Peterson-style boxes on Kings Hwy was not good at all:

10 eggs
  9 chicks
  1 fledgling

I opened the box #2 over by Stai Coulee today and found one chick had fledged, the other was dead.

Finally, Nests!

The two boxes that have had no sign of bluebirds have nests! Finally. Maybe it's the steady warm weather.

Box 1: 4 eggs (I removed one egg that had a cracked shell. It felt lighter than the other 4 eggs, and when I broke it open, it was definitely a goner.)
Box 2: 4 eggs
Box 3: down for cleaning
Box 4: down for cleaning
Box 5: nest (first nest in three years)
Box 6: nest (first nest this year)

Tarrant Park New Nests

First Brood Totals for 6 Bluebird Boxes in Tarrant Park

Eggs:  23
Hatchlings:  16
Fledglings:  14

Box #1:  3 Bluebird chicks and one egg (the egg may be infertile).
Box #2:  empty
Box #3:  new nest
Box #5:  2 bluebird eggs
Box #6:  1 Bluebird egg

Box #8:  new nest - finished in less than 24 hours (I sanitized the box yesterday

Kings Hwy Boxes

I was feeling some trepidation as I drove over to check out the Maxville Boxes today.   I was worried about the 2 remaining chicks in the Peterson box near Stai Coulee.  Good news.  The chicks were alive (and perky) and both the male and female were hanging around the nest box. 

It looks there's a Vesper Sparrow nest in the grasses between the two trees near the Stai Coulee box.  We had great looks at a pair hunting bugs.

Kings Hwy Peterson Box 1:  2 bluebird eggs
Stai Coulee Peterson Box 2: 2 chicks

Maxville 1:  chicks fledged, new nest on top of the old one.  1 bluebird egg

Maxville 2:  empty, no nest.

New Clutches in Tarrant Park

It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood park today: 82º F, blue sky and low humidity.

I washed out box #8 and put it back up - clean and ready to go for the next brood.  With the promise of warm weather, the next brood should get off to a good start.

Box #1:  3 newly hatched bluebird chicks and one unhatched egg
Box #2:  House sparrow nest (I removed it).
Box #3:  House sparrow nest (removed).
Box #5:  1 Bluebird egg in a nest made of pine needles
Box #6:  bluebird nest - no eggs
Box #8:  cleaned and reinstalled.

Mystery Chick Deaths on Kings Highway

I didn't get out to check the boxes yesterday, so I looked at them today.  I expected to see empty boxes.  Wrong.  I found a mystery.  All the chicks were healthy on Monday.  Not so today.

As I got out of my car, I saw the flies and picked up on the familiar odor.  Still, I did not expect to find 2 dead chicks in the box near Stai Coulee.  Two live chicks remained.  One looked weak.  Whazzup?

I waited and watched.

The 2 live chicks, called.  Their mom appeared and flew around the box.  When she seemed hesitant to go inside, we drove off.

No sign of trauma.  Maybe the male died and they starved?  Maybe it had something to do with what's in the bugs?

Maxville Box 1.1:  3 very large chicks.
Maxville Box 1.2:  empty

Kings Hwy Peterson Box:  new bluebird nest, female in the box, 1 bluebird egg
Stai Coulee:  2 dead chix (I removed them); 2 live chicks (one appeared weak); female hanging around.

Maintenance

Box 1: 5 warm eggs (1 with a crack in the shell)
Box 2: 4 warm eggs
Box 3: box down for cleaning
Box 4: box down for cleaning
Box 5: empty
Box 6: empty

4 Chicks on Kings Hwy near Stai Coulee

Bluebirds have started to rebuild in the Peterson box on Kings Hwy - the one with the dead chicks last week.

The other Peterson box is doing well:  4 chicks ready to fledge any day now.

Bluebirds, Tree Swallows and House Sparrows

Box #3:  Bluebirds are about to fledge 3 healthy chicks in the BRAW bluebird box by the utility pole at the entrance to the Eau Galle Cheese factory.

Box #1:  Tree Swallows have built a beautiful nest with 3 eggs (so far) in the box by State Rd 25.  Unfortunately this box is not the best design (too much ventilation and too little space inside).  The birds have ignored it until this week - and I hope they can survive the design flaws.

Box #2:  House Sparrows continue to build a nest in the box by the parking lot.  This box also suffers from design flaws (the hole is way too big and the interior dimensions are on the small side).  I removed the House Sparrow nest - no eggs.

9 chicks in Maxville

Maxville 1.1:  4 fully feathered chicks

Maxville 1.2:  5 fully feathered chicks - parents dive-bombed me when I checked the boxes

Bluebird Fledgling Total = 9

Tarrant Park is jumping with birds... Baltimore Orioles, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Gray Catbirds, Redstarts and American Robins!

Box 1:  4 hot bluebird eggs

Box 2:  Removed House Sparrow nest

Box 3:  2 healthy chicks - ready to fledge.

Box 5:   3 chicks fledged; clean

Box 6:  (5 fledged)  2 adults on top of the box, building a new nest

Box 10:  (1 chick fledged) 3 chicks ready to fledge

Vanished!

Approximately 8 days after hatching the 3 chicks in box 1 have disappeared.

Box 2 is still empty

Lots to share from our last post here at Arkansaw Elementary School. Weather has been an issue here making monitoring boxes difficult. Nest box #6 fail, has been cleaned out, disinfected and is ready for a new nest/clutch. Nest box #2 has been relocated near the Pepin County Fair grounds building and already has house sparrow nest with 2 eggs in it.

Nest Box #1 Nothing

Nest Box #2 House Sparrow nest with 2 eggs

Nest Box #3 Nothing

Nest Box #4 House Sparrow nest eggs gone...destroyed nest

Nest Box #5 4 babies! about 4-5 days old

Nest Box #6 Nest failed, bleached box

Nest Box #10 Bluebird nest with 4 eggs--estimated hatch date 6/4

3 chicks in Pepin

Box #1:  3 chix sprouting feather sheaths

Box #2:  empty

3 warm nestlings

Box #1:  3 healthy warm chicks

Box #2:  empty - house sparrows still hanging around

Box #3  empty

5 Fledglings!

Tarrant Park is full of migrating neotropical songbirds - Baltimore Orioles, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Redstarts, Yellow Warblers, Common Yellowthroats and a Harris's Sparrow.
Box #1:  4 hot eggs and male incubating

Box #2:  empty

Box #3:  2 healthy chicks

Box #5:  3 healthy chicks

Box #6:  empty - Looks like 5 have fledged.  Removed the nest, swept out the box.

Box #8:  4 healthy chicks

Cold Wet Weather = Dead Chicks

I checked the two Peterson style boxes on Kings Hwy & Stai Coulee Rd today.

Bad news and Good news:

I could smell the bad news as I got out of the Prius to check the Kings Hwy box.  2 dead chicks - the 3 others missing and no sign of any adults in the neighborhood.  No sign of any commotion - no feathers, no blood, no water in the nest box.   Could be due to the 5 days of cold, wet weather (hard to find insect food). 

 

 2 dead chix Kings Hwy Peterson Box

The Good news was in the box at Stai Coulee:  4 healthy chicks.  Momma incubating.

3 White Bluebird Eggs

Maxville 3.4 Box Has 3 white, warm bluebird eggs.

Missing Eggs and Other Nest Box Challenges

Over the years, I've opened what appeared to be "successful" bluebird boxes only to discover an empty nest.   What happened to the eggs (or chicks)?

The easy answer:  a predator.

But which one?

To solve the mystery, look for clues and compare them to the "nest box problem" chart - on the the North American Bluebird Society's (NABS) website, click here.

I suspect the culprit at Tatanka Bluffs may be a House Sparrow.  I noticed a few when I monitored the boxes in April.  NABS offers several suggestions on how to eliminate House Sparrows and European Starlings.  Unlike our native cavity-nesting species, sparrows and starlings are not protected by state and federal wildlife laws.

House Wren

The other likely suspect:  House Wrens.   However, these wrens are native species - and protected.  You cannot remove their nests and eggs - or harass them.

If you discover wrens nesting along your bluebird trail, you may be in for trouble.  These little dynamos are very territorial and have been know to eliminate competition by destroying (and removing) the eggs and young of bluebirds, chickadees and titmice.

The easy solution -  don't encourage wrens.  

If wrens have established a territory - remember - you are not allowed to harass them.  Let them finish.  Meantime, find a new and better location for your bluebird nest box.  

By the way, I checked the Peterson box over on Stai Coulee today - 4 very hungry nestlings and a hen setting on them.  Outside air temperature 44º F.

Cold Chicks

All the chicks seemed so cold and looked kind of gnarly. I checked on them as quickly as possible.

May 12, 2010:
Box 1: 1 cold egg (I'm leaving it for now, but will check tomorrow. I haven't noticed the adult bluebirds hanging around this box the last couple days.)
Box 2: completed nest (The birds build this overnight.)
Box 3: 4 chicks
Box 4: 3 chicks
Box 5: no more work done on nest - there is still only a thin layer of nesting material on the floo; tree swallows have favored this box as a perching site the past 2 years
Box 6: empty

Peterson box, Kings Hwy. west: 5 chicks with mama on the nest (hatched ~May 8)

2 New Boxes Up & 5 Eggs Gone

On May 4 I finally put Box 1 up. The next day I saw that a male and female bluebird had adopted the box. By May 9 it looked like their nest was completed.

I also got Box 5 up on May 4. The next day there was a thin layer of nesting material on the floor of the box, and a bluebird was perched on top of the box almost every time I looked.

Box 2 did have 5 eggs in the nest since April 28. The female was always on the nest when I checked it or flew out of it when I drove by. But on May 8, all the eggs were gone. I'm assuming it was from the cold weather. I saw no signs of predators, and we have a predator guard. This box has been very successful the last two years. This is the first time I've experienced the complete disappearance of eggs. What happens? Does the female carry them away or throw them out the hole? And when does she decide to do this?

May 8, 2010:

Box 1: new box up May 4; bluebird nest present
Box 2: all 5 eggs gone; I removed the nest.
Box 3: 4 healthy-looking chicks (8 days old)
Box 4: 3 healthy-looking chicks (9 days old)
Box 5: new box up May 4; thin layer of nest material on floor of box
Box 6: empty; new position for box this year - I'm going to leave it in place. I think it's got a good chance of attracting bluebirds.

13 chicks and 6 eggs in Tarrant Park

After a night with the temperature below freezing, I was reluctant to check the boxes today.  I waited until the thermometer hit 59ºF and took a spin through the park to check them out.  I was pleasantly surprised, but concerned that the chicks (and their parents) have not gotten much to eat the past 2 days.

Box #1:  3 Bluebird Eggs - finally - after dispatching the House Sparrows.

Box #2:  This has become a "problem" box recently - human vandalism and now House Sparrows.

Box #3:  2 warm bluebird eggs - bird on the nest

Box #5:  3 chicks and 1 egg - bird on the nest

Box #6:  5 chicks - parents dive-bombing and bill clacking as I make the nest check.

Box #8:  5 chicks  - bird on the nest

The boxes at the school bus parking lot have been unsuccessful so far.

Box #1:  House sparrow nest with ants - removed

Box #2:  House sparrow nest with 6 eggs - removed

Box #3:  empty (mouse family has moved on)

Peterson Box:  very wet and empty

Box #4:  scolding House Wrens holding on to 2 eggs (cold)

New Nest

The new Maxville #3.4 has a nice new nest. No eggs as of yet. We have seen the male sitting on the box quite a bit.

Maxville Boxes

M.1.1 Four warm, eggs
M.1.2 Five warm, eggs

It was a chilly 54º today - but insects were flying in Tarrant Park... and with them Yellow Warblers, Baltimore Orioles and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. Declining Trillium (T. flexipes) is in bloom. Honeysuckle buds are bursting.Here's what's happening in the bluebird boxes:

Box 1: nest no eggs

Box 2: This nest has been inactive for days, so I took it apart and discovered there were 2 nests. The lower nest had 2 bluebird eggs in it - both cold. So I emptied the box to give the bluebirds a chance to start anew.

Box 3: 2 Bluebird Eggs - warm to the touch

Box 5: 4 Bluebird Eggs - warm to the touch


Box 6: 5 Bluebird chicks - parents mounted a noisy bill-clacking flying attack as I looked in.


Box 8: 5 Bluebird chicks - hatched this morning

Maxville Boxes

M.1.1 Four warm eggs
M.1.2 Five eggs and the Female Bluebird sitting on them

American Robin Babies

Arkansaw # 2.7-- bluebird box empty

I have also been watching an American Robin's nest under my deck. On Saturday five little baby Robins hatched and seem to be doing very well.
After observing the babies my daughter said, "They are telling their mommy, I'm hungry, I'm hungry. Please feed me!"

9 warm eggs in Peterson Boxes

The 2 Peterson boxes on Kings Highway are nearly full.

Box by Stai Coulee:  4 eggs

Box west of Tatanka:  5 eggs

3 warm eggs

Box #1:  3 warm eggs.
Box #2.   Empty.   House Sparrows are still hanging around, but Tree Swallows are making another try at a nest.  The entrance hole on this box is nearly 2" in diameter (should be 1-1/2"). 

Box #3.  No nest and wet inside.  I suspect it has something to do with the box design (too much ventilation at the top).

I've Returned to Chicks!

After leaving Buffalo county when there was still snow on the ground and spending the beginning of spring in the Windy City, my family and I returned to the lush green of Tatanka Bluffs where we encountered the excitement-producing bluebird nests. (Thanks to Hybrid Birder for monitoring while we were away.) We have enjoyed our last two years of participating in the Bluebird Restoration Association of Wisconsin (BRAW) monitoring of bluebird nests boxes and are happy to see more nest boxes going up and this public reporting of the current data.

We rarely find the empty shells. This was under the nestbox.

Box 3: last egg in hatching mode on 4/29

Friday's afternoon rain brought us a nice picture. We almost reached the elusive pot of gold.

May 1, 2010:
Box 1: down
Box 2: 5 warm bluebird eggs
Box 3: 4 chicks (hatched 4/30)
Box 4: 3 chicks; removed 2 nonviable eggs - 1 with hole in egg; chicks hatched ~4/29
Box 5: down
Box 6: empty