The first thing you will want to do is go to the website www.sialis.org. It contains the most authoritative information about bluebirds on the web. Good luck with your blues.

Thank you! I purchased a couple of bluebird houses this afternoon and will check out that website.

:) jeana

Welcome to the forum, jeana. I agree the Sialis site is THE place to find answers to the questions you listed and a lot more you probably hadn't even thought of yet.

This place is rather quiet right now but in a month or so things will really start jumping. You should find it very interesting and educational.

I have nine bluebirds that come for meal worms every day. Normally I put the worms in a cage feeder to keep the starlings from eating them all. The bluebirds have a definite pecking order. The adults eat first, then the older juveniles and lastly the youngest and most timid juveniles. With all the snow and cold we have been having here lately, I worried for the younger birds so I took a bunch of cat food cans and fastened them to a board and put a few worms in each can. It seems to work a lot better. It also gives me a chance to get pictures of several of them at the same time. Here are five from day before yesterday.

Dave

Jeana,

Welcome to the Bluebird addiction! There is a page on the Sialis website about feeding mealworms with information about feeders, location, etc. mealworm feeding
There are even instructions for building your own feeder if you choose to go that route. In my experience, nothing brings them in like mealworms. Since you only have a single bird so far, it should be quite inexpensive to keep him him coming by feeding him.

Very cute picture, Dave.
Tammy

Welcome to the forum, prepare to become addicted. We are so glad you came for advise BEFORE you got started, so many pop in after there has been a problem just to find they have done everything wrong. Most folks have no clue (I sure didn't)how much is involved in beeing a GOOD landlord. There are some great people and some of the best advice from real "PROS" here at your fingertips!

All of these nice folks have given you good advice. There really is a lot to learn if you wanna be a great BB host. Their nesting preferences are sort of specific. Make sure to read about where you should place those nesting boxes. Also read about how to protect them from other birds that might destroy their nests and eggs. You will be a terrific BB host because you care.

Hi Jeana,

I too have bought a pair of bluebird boxes in the hopes of attracting a pair of those pretty birds.

I have visited the sialis site, it is full of information.
I think that quite a few people from the bird watching forum have blues too.

I think I can manage everything you need to do for these birds except the mealworms...the thought of doing that makes me feel pretty queasy. I grew up around hunters and everything, but handling those worms is something I'm not sure I can do. So if it turns out I HAVE to do that and I can't, I will give up the nestboxes.

Let me know how you are doing with this new project. I think we have been "bird habitat people" for about the same amount of time! :)

Chickadeemelrose,just to let you know,you really don't need to feed mealworms to have bluebirds.I ,as I said earlier this week to you,have had nesting blues for many years.Some years I have fed mealworms and some years,I have not.We are away a lot in the summer,especially on weekends,so I do not like to start feeding them and then be gone for a number of days.Last summer there were lots of insects,so they were fine without mealies.We also have had nesting blues at our vacation home in New Hampshire and I have never fed mealies up there.However It is fun to see them up close when they come to a feeder,just not necessary.Hope you get some this Spring....Jane

Chickadee, You can always find wax worms at bait shops, they are a lot less spooky looking. The only time you would need to feed them is if there were babies in very cold weather where bugs are scarce or if there are babies and one parent is lost. Get your boxes ready, it's almost time!:)

You do not have to feed them at all. As Lisa said, you really only need them (mealworms/waxworms) to supplement in an emergency. Please just remember that they hunt for insects, usually on the ground. Don't use any insecticides on the lawn or you could poison them.

Thanks everyone, it is a relief to hear that I may not have to deal with mealworms at all.

I did find a nice "bluebird banquet" recipe through the Sialis website, and I will gladly make that and put some out on our fruit and jelly feeder; but as you said, the summertime bugs etc. will probably be enough.

We never use insecticides or herbicides on our property.
I use Miracle Gro in our vegetable garden and container flowers and that's it. I know the birds enjoy finding bugs and worms in the garden. I appreciate the heads up though Kendra, because you never know.

I was evaluating our back yard today (it's pretty good size) and think I have good places for the nestboxes. Thanks again for your encouragement! :)

Two things, from my perspective: With regard to feeding bluebirds during nesting season, I would do this only in emergencies such as extended periods of cold, wet weather when insects are scarce. Bluebirds love "junk food" too, and providing a diet of mealworms or suet can encourage them, especially females, to become calcium deficient. Not good, especially at a time of year when their bodies are expending so much during egg-laying. Bet has posted info on this at sialis.org-see link below.

The second is a reminder that your nestboxes should be mounted on metal conduit with a predator baffle. Someone may have said this already, but I didn't see it.

I hope everyone has a safe and productive nesting season!
Kathy

Here is a link that might be useful: Supplementing Calcium

Thanks Kathy -

For the note about the nestboxes and for the link to the calcium page, very helpful!

Donna

In my experience it hasn't necessary to feed meal worms to attract and feed Bluebirds. Small flocks of Blues have been coming to my suet log to eat the home-made suet mixture for the past 4 winters. The mixture is made with suet or lard, peanut butter, flour, corn meal, and assorted other ingredients. I include ground up eggshells for calcium and grit.

Last summer, a pair of Bluebirds raised 3 broods in the pine snags in the back yard. They didn't seem to have any trouble finding a steady supply of insects in the area. Some days, especially if it was wet or cool, I would spread a few suet crumbles and tap on the tray, and they would immediately fly over to get a few crumbles. I observed them feeding suet nuggets to the nestlings and fledglings sometimes too.