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Sad day in NC

14 years ago

Hello

I have work 13-14 years trying to attract blue birds and learning there habit. Well this year I did everything I could to keep the varmints away. About 1 months ago I had a pair of birds building in one of my boxes and one day I went out to the check the box and notice I had a died blue bird that apparently got trap in the box by a sparrow. I made my mind up that the gloves were off with that male sparrows. I bought two traps and begin to trap and kill them. Over the next months another pair of blue birds starting building and no signs of sparrows. after the baby blue birds hatch and were feathered; I watch them like the were my own. This past weekend I notice a male sparrow bother my blue birds and today I came home and found 4 died and one on the ground that I do not know what to do with. So much work preparing,Watching,trapping to see these birds go down the way the did.

KILL YOUR SPARROWS

SAD DAY

Jeff

Comments (5)

bbcathy
14 years ago
Did you have a sparrow spooker on the box? If not you didn't do everything you could do. It is like a 24/7 babysitter for them. Go to this website and learn how to make one and protect your Blues and keep trapping.
Cathy

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.sialis.org
mulchmamma
14 years ago
Jeff, don't feel like you are the only one that has gone through this. Your error was not researching enough because like Cathy said, you didn't have a spooker on the box.

A single male HOSP can go undetected until all your birds have been killed. The very worst thing you can do now is to get depressed and give up-get even and dispatch every single HOSP you possibly can. Get your neighbors on board, too.

All the info you need is on the sialis site.

Linda
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bbcathy
14 years ago
Jeff Linda is right. Don't give up. I went through it my first year. I didn't know any better. After they were dead is when I went looking to find out what happened and found the sialis site and a couple forums including this one. Sialis taught me most of what I know. Bet who runs that site is the one who told me about the spookers. It has been 6 or 7 years of successful Bluebirding since then.
Good Luck
tmann05
14 years ago
Any area with a thick amount of HOSP i recommend you have inbox traps and a groud repeating trap. I do not use sparrow spookers - i instead use gilbertson boxes. Most HOSP are not drawn to this kind of box and it works out great for the EABL and TRES I have. If a HOSP decides to claim a box i just put in the gilbertson trap and catch him, then i put him into the repeating trap and lure more HOSP into the repeating trap. Its not your fault, we cant babysit our boxes 24/7 so just do your best to eliminate the predators (HOSP) in your area as best you can and hopefully one day you will be HOSP free
bbcathy
14 years ago
I seriously beg to differ with you. I call a sparrow spooker exactly that, a 24/7 babysitter for your birds. Against hosps anyway. I have been trapping and shooting for 6 years with Van Erts and a DRST at two locations within a 1/2 mile from here and I still will lose a Tres or Blue to a hosp attack once in a blue moon before eggs are laid. (can't use a spooker unless it is a previous pair) I have about 18 boxes. A determined hosp will nest in anything. The best insurance is to use both.
Cathy

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