Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. The last nest with birds has emptied, all the birds have fledged. There are new berry baskets in each of our six nest boxes in case a bluebird, chickadee or even a house wren decides to give it another go. But, it’s late in the season and though we’ve gone into August in years past, it doesn’t seem as though it will happen this year. I see no new nest under construction, though one nestRead more
Posts tagged: #fledgling
Nest Box Update 6.11.24
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. We now have only one active nest with three nestlings. One nest just fledged five bluebirds while all the remaining nest boxes are empty. — The Cow Pasture, Explore the Wild, Into the Mist, Parking Deck East and Parking Deck West boxes are all without occupants, the PKW nest having just fledged their five nestlings during the past week. The Butterfly House nest box, the last on the list of weekly inspections, has three bluebirdRead more
Little Bear and Some Late Spring Encounters
Top Photo: Little Bear by the waterfall. Little Bear’s pelage stands out among our three black bears occupying the Black Bear Enclosure. The following are subjects you might encounter on our Outdoor Loop Trail in late spring to early summer, now. Two very common and widespread dragonflies, common whitetail and eastern amberwing are sure to be seen on any sunny day. Not as frequently seen but still common are Carolina saddlebags. They spend much of their time on the wing.Read more
Nest Box Update 6.4.24
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. We have eight bluebird nestlings in two separate nests. Four of our nest boxes are empty with no activity. — The Cow Pasture, Explore the Wild, Into the Mist, and Parking Deck East nest boxes are all empty, but ready to go should any local avian cavity nesters feel the urge. Last week I predicted that the five bluebird nestlings in the nest box on the west side of the parking deck will have fledgedRead more
Nest Box Update 5.28.24
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. We have four empty, inactive nests and two nest boxes with bluebird nestlings inside. — The Cow Pasture nest box has been cleared of nest material and a new berry basket placed inside. The Explore the Wild nest box is empty. Into the Mist is vacant. The nest box on the east side of the parking deck has no occupants. The are five, almost ready to fledge, bluebirds still being fed by their parents inRead more
Nest Box Update 5.21.24
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. First, thanks to Ranger Kade and Volunteer Sammie for conducting the nest box inspections this week in my absence (everybody deserves a little time off). They did an excellent job checking, photographing and reporting on the nest box activity during the past week. Here’s what they saw. Three nest boxes are empty. One nest box has two eggs in it, but should be labeled empty (will be, hereafter). One nest box has bluebird eggs whileRead more
Nest Box Update 5.14.24
Top Photo: eastern bluebird eggs. Of our six nest boxes, three hold bluebird eggs, two, five, and three for a total of ten eggs. The other three nest boxes are empty. — The Cow Pasture nest box still contains two bluebird eggs. There have been two eggs in this nest since at least April 30’s inspection of the nest boxes, two weeks ago. These eggs should have hatched. I’ve not seen adult bluebirds in the area. Has this nest beenRead more
Nest Box Update 4.23.24
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. We have one empty nest box, one with a nest sans eggs (chickadees), two with 1 egg each (chickadee and bluebird) and a total of eleven nestlings (4 chickadees and 7 bluebirds. — After having been raided by a house wren and emptied of its five eggs, the bluebird pair has apparently rallied and started a new nest. The Cow Pasture nest box has come back to life and so far holds one bluebird egg.Read more
Nest Box Update 4.16.24
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. There are currently 10 eggs (chickadees), 7 nestlings (bluebirds) and at least one unhatched egg (bluebird) in our six nest boxes. One nest has been destroyed by house wrens. — The nest at the Cow Pasture held 5 bluebird eggs at last week’s nest box inspection. The box was empty of eggs this morning (4/16/24). Looking around, there were 5 eggs on the ground directly in front of the next box, all punctured. While IRead more