Top photo: Nest box at Cow pasture.

All of our six nest boxes are empty!

The bluebird nestlings that were in the Cow Pasture, Amphimeadow, and Butterfly House nests have all fledged, an additional twelve bluebirds (4 in each nest) have joined the local avifauna. One nest box has been relieved of it occupants, and two others are waiting new residents.

The nest boxes at both the Bungee Jump and the Sailboat Pond are empty and waiting for occupants. The Bungee nest has, so far, fledged one brood of chickadees, while the Sailboat Pond nest box has yet to produce.

The nest box at the Picnic Dome has had an interesting history. On April 14, this nest had five bluebird eggs in its pine straw nest. The following week the eggs were gone, twigs left in their place, twigs left by a house wren, the culprit behind the missing bluebird eggs.

On April 28, the nest contained a full-blown house wren nest. The following week, there were six eggs in the nest. This week, poof, no more eggs. All the eggs were gone. The eggs surely did not hatch and the nestlings fledge in one week. Things move quickly in the bird world, but no, that’s a bit too quick. I suspect a rat snake crawled into the nest box and swallowed the eggs or nestlings, whichever was in the nest at the time.

Some may say that this is justice for the wren’s destruction of the bluebird’s nest which was originally in that nest box. What it is, in reality, is another empty nest waiting for occupation.

So, to summarize, all nest boxes are empty. Thus far, four chickadees and 12 bluebirds have fledged. There is ample time for another brood for the bluebirds, or even chickadees. But, as always, we’ll have to wait and see what develops.

Till next time!