That is horrible I'm so sorry. Did you have a sparrow spooker up? Hosp are pretty stealthy in how they kill so maybe you can't see the wounds. But most of the time it's a bloodbath. If your pole is properly baffled etc. I don't think a coon would've killed her without taking her out. Hopefully no one used chemicals in the area. Real sorry.

So sorry about your female Bluebird! My guess would be a House Sparrow got in there and gave her one good peck on the head and killed her. I have seen Tree Swallows pecked just once and killed by House Sparrows. Sparrow spookers are a must if you have nesting bluebirds. Check out the sparrow spooker page on sialis.org for info on how to make them, they are put up after the first egg is laid and taken down after the nestlings fledge.

Your male may find a new female...hard to say if he would bring her back to this nestbox though as normally if a nesting fails the blues won't use the same box again.

Good luck!

Donna

Deb, I think Lexa might have had a possibility of what happened.

Do any of your neighbors spray their lawns?? My neighbor does, and unfortunately there's nothing you can do about it when it isn't your property. Most other people out here do NOT spray chemicals because it makes little sense. Too much land. City slickers usually use it on their lawns. No one (other than my neigbor who sprays for dandelions) worries about those things out here.

I'm sorry to hear about this. But I agree that Sparrow Spookers are a must. You may also be interested in the nest box traps for House Sparrows, which directly address the issue of their use of nest boxes.

~Tim~

I did see your post on the B&B group and being egg bound is a possiblity since there were only three eggs..the norm is four or five but I have had Blues lay only three before too. Hard to say. As long as you provide a properly mounted house in a good area away from anything a predator can jump from...using sparrow spookers and or wren guards if those birds are in your area then that is really all we can do to help these beautiful birds. Being a bluebird monitor has some heartbreaking downfalls but is also very very rewarding when you see the nestlings fledge and know you helped get them there! Good luck and don't give up! Hopefully your male will find another mate and they will go on to nest with you!

Donna

I am a nervous wreck! I went home for lunch today and see that NatureScape has been there and put fertilizer down! I only have them come in the fall, AFTER all birds are done with their broods and have left. Not sure why they came today. Ugh!

Do I have to worry that my birds might be poisoned? I sure hope not, as we will have baby blues within a week!

YIKES! So worried.

Does this fertilizer contain weed killer? Is it a spray? Not sure if just fertilizer would hurt them in anyway. Herbicides and pesticides is what kills.

Donna

I'm not sure if the neighbors had sprayed or not. Where we live, that usually isn't the case; however, the nest is along the property border where that could certainly be an issue should they choose to use chemicals. I'm not taking any chances. I'm going to have the bluebird houses (two of them) moved elsewhere in our yard, as we have 3 1/2 acres of property to work with. I'm new at this and realizing there are several problems that could arise because of the location. I'll do anything to protect the bluebirds and assist them in whatever way I can.

Note: After checking the second house, we found it had been taken over by english sparrows. We eliminated their nest and the two eggs that were in it. Not to be cruel, by why couldn't it have been one of them that died instead?

Thank you all again for your input. It has been extremely helpful!

Deb, you may be interested in the Van Ert inbox nest trap. You can eliminate the pair of sparrows with this. Link to it is below.

Trapping is your decision though. Some prefer not to do it, but most do because stopping short of trapping often results in dead adults, nestlings, and destroyed eggs of native species.

The Van Ert combined with the Sparrow Spooker make a good defense. I also use the Deluxe Repeating Sparrow Trap (DRST) which is a ground trap meant to capture multiple sparrows.

No problem at all! Glad to hear you're so dedicated! With that attitude and having what you need, you'll be on your way to success with these amazing birds!

~Tim~

Here is a link that might be useful: Van Ert Sparrow Trap

Tim,

I happen to already have a list next to my computer of all the items I need to get. I just got off the phone with my husband (who called to let me know he's on his way home from work) and informed him that I'm on a save-the-bluebirds mission. He laughed, knowing full well that I mean business. He also mentioned purchasing a b.b. gun. Look out, english sparrows, your time here is limited!

But seriously, the Van Ert and the sparrow spooker will both be added to my inventory, as will the DRST. Reading up on everyone's postings has me so anxious to do all I can to save the bluebirds. I thank you again for your suggestions!

Deb...sounds like you are on the right track. I use the van erts and a b.b gun for the House Sparrows. Just make sure you can positively id the correct sparrows before you would shoot them, there are lots of little brown birds out there.

I sure hope you get the blues to move into your newly located nestboxes and good luck with those sparrows! Seeing that you do have HOSP around...chances are that is what happened to your female Blue.

Donna

I totally understand how you feel! I just came home today and found my female blue bird dead in my yard.. the male is still around but I don't know what's going to happen to the eggs. will another female nest on the eggs?

Last night we found the male of our nesting pair dead on the nest containing three eggs, no sign of any wound or of the female. We are so sad and wonder...if the female died away from the nest, would the male die of starvation rather than abandon the eggs? It's metro Atlanta spring temps, down into the low 40s at night and pleasant daytime temps so don't think cold was an issue.

Hi Kathleen- I'll address you since the other posts are old. I am so very sorry that you have experienced this. Did you read what the responses were to the older post of one that lost a bluebird on the nest? I would just repeat everything that they said. If absolutely no sign of injury, I would suspect lawn pesticides, but considering what happened to the 1st person that posted & didn't see signs of injury on her bluebird, it did turn out to be house sparrows. I would highly suspect this. Do you think the female is dead too? If so, again I would be suspicious of HOSP.

Answering your question, the male would not starve himself, nor is he able to brood eggs. If the female died too, the eggs wouldn't have hatched because the female is the one to incubate the eggs. She has a brooding patch on her lower abdomen that the male doesn't have. If she is alive, she may not be returning to nest because of the failed nest situation, especially if there was foul play. Make sure you know that she is not returning before removing the nest & eggs. If she is alive, she will probably try to find a new mate.

Without repeating too much, make sure your birdhouse is on a pole with a baffle & put a sparrow spooker up after the 1st egg. If you know for sure that the nest has been abandoned & you don't get any activity, you may want to change the location of the box (birdhouse). If you immediately get a house sparrow setting up shop, then you'll know that was most likely the culprit. Again, if female is not returning, now would be the time to get a Van Ert trap for your house to trap the male & female HOSP. If you do, make sure you are monitoring every hour if possible so you don't trap a native bird. They can die in there if without food for too long. One of the previous posts left a website for the Van Ert trap. Again, the previous posts left great advice for your situation.

This site is not as active as it used to be for bluebirders, so you may want to post to bluebirdnut.com. Lots of bluebird experts are on that site like this one used to have. That's where I go whenever I need advice. BTW, I lived in Atlanta for ten years (live in AL now). Very sorry to hear about your bluebird tragedy. Hope you'll have another pair come for a future nesting, but definitely get that sparrow spooker!

Hi parkernicole01,

I got almost the same question! This month a Sunbird make a nest in my garden.

But this morning I saw the mother bird was death in the nest with 2 eggs. VERY SAD! Anyone know why?

Oh, that's so sad! Did you notice any markings on the mom? So sorry!

Nicole