Roger and Pat Temples
2010-08-01
This is our second year monitoring a Bluebird Trail at The Greene Hills Club, a golf course near our home. We are not what anyone could consider “bird-watchers” in the strict sense of the term, although we certainly enjoy watching the birds that flock to our backyard feeders. When we started our project, we knew very little about bluebird nesting habits, but we were excited about learning. And, we have certainly learned a lot!
Initially we put 25 boxes at the golf course, scattered throughout with a minimum of 100 yards between any two boxes. This year we added five more boxes. We have done our record-keeping, so we are very aware of box locations that haven’t been productive and we have plans to move those boxes before next spring.
 We have loved going out to monitor the boxes on a weekly basis, because each week we learn something new! Alfred Goossens observed the monitoring in early August. We have learned what the different nests look like for different bird species. Bluebirds make nests primarily out of pine needles, and they are nice and neat with a deep pocket in the center to support the eggs and young. House sparrows make very messy nests with lots of “junk” included, such as plastic, feathers, pieces of string, whatever else they can find nearby. Those are undesirable species, so we remove those nests as soon as we can identify them. House wrens use twigs and make very organized, but airy nests. Carolina Chickadees make moss nests, very compact, tight and beautiful. And, tree swallows make nests that look very much like bluebird nests, but on the very top they put a thick layer of feathers, so soft and plush a layer as to support a queen.
 Our duties as monitors include a weekly check of the boxes.We open the box, look into the nest, count the eggs or the young, and record our findings. We estimate the age of the young so that we can guess the point at which they will fledge. From the time eggs are laid until the young fledge is over a month. However, as lengthy as that process is, two and sometimes three clutches can be possible in any one box. Adele Baker is shown here checking one of the nests for eggs.
In our first year all four of the desirable species fledged some young. We increased the bluebird population by 66 young, and there were 40 additional young among the other three species. This year 107 baby bluebirds have joined our population, but we have had fewer of other species. We have encountered a few unhatched eggs this year, as well as some baby birds that didn’t make it. That was different this year. We don’t know why that happened, but we are so proud of our bluebirds this year! This is a very enjoyable project, and we look forward to going out each week to see what’s happening.
If you are interested in a project like this one, you can call us and we’ll be glad to help you get started. You can also find all the information you need on the website for the Virginia Bluebird Society at www.virginiabluebirds.org. Pat Wilczek is the Bluebird Trail coordinator for our chapter.
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