Ads
related to: bluebird nest box location
Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The key for a bluebird nest box is to have the hole be exactly 1.5 inches in diameter. Too large of a hole invites starlings and makes it easier for squirrels and other larger rodents to get in.
Eastern bluebird at the entrance of a nest box. A nest box, also spelled nestbox, is a man-made enclosure provided for animals to nest in. Nest boxes are most frequently utilized for birds, in which case they are also called birdhouses or a birdbox/bird box, but some mammals such as bats may also use them. Placing nestboxes or roosting boxes ...
Nest in a nest box The western bluebird nests in cavities or in nest boxes , competing with tree swallows , house sparrows , and European starlings for natural nesting locations. Because of the high level of competition, house sparrows often attack western bluebirds for their nests.
Predators of young bluebirds in the nests can include snakes, cats, and raccoons. Bird species competing with bluebirds for nesting locations include the common starling, American crow, and house sparrow, which take over the nesting sites of bluebirds, killing young, smashing eggs, and probably killing adult bluebirds. [6] Male western bluebird
Among birds that nest in cavities but cannot excavate them on their own, competition is high for nest sites. Mountain, Western, and more recently Eastern bluebirds compete for nest boxes where their ranges overlap. House Sparrows, European Starlings, and House Wrens also compete fiercely with bluebirds for nest cavities. [17]
Bluebirds have two or three nestings per year so do not give up trying to attract them. Keep monitoring your bluebird nest boxes and make sure that they aren’t occupied by house sparrows.
Fledglings then leave the nest 15 to 20 days after hatching. [11] Juvenile (left) with parent Eastern bluebird at nesting box Eastern bluebird in Quebec, Canada. Both parents cooperate in raising the young, which they feed a diet consisting almost entirely of insects. Some young stay around the nest to help raise another brood.
[17] [19] A similar field observation notes a violet-green swallow laying an egg in an active bluebird nest box. Initially, the male bluebird attempted to drive the swallow from the nest cavity, while the female bluebird did not seem concerned with the intruder. It appeared the bluebirds tolerated the act of egg-dumping by the violet-green ...