Gina, so sorry about this. I have a couple of questions--first, is your nestbox mounted on a metal pole with a predator baffle? If not, it's possible that you had either a raccoon or snake visit your box. If your babies were 15 days old, it's possible that the parents were able to call them out of the box, at least let's hope so. I'm mostly concerned for your mother bird. I suppose if the babies were as old as they were, it's unlikely that the mama blue was inside the box and we can hope that she's just off somewhere working off her fright. A raccoon or cat would disturb the nesting material if they were reaching for the young inside the box. How high is your nestbox off the ground? Is it on a fence or near trees where an animal could drop down on it?
If you can give us some information on how your box is set up, we can give you some better possibilities.
Kathy

Thank you for responding Kathy. The nest box is on a 2x4 wood pole about five feet off the ground. It sits alone along side a steam that is about ten feet away or more. There are no trees close enough for anything to drop down on the box, but there is a small woods line across the stream that is not very thick at all, after the woods line is a big field. I hope I described it well enough?
IM so bummed out that now there is no blue birds at all. I had a glimpse of hope that Dad was still around and that maybe Mom was off somwhere with her young. When Dad did feed he flew off farther than normal, do you think Mom blue is where he is going? I just dont know what to say IM so bummed. Thank you so much for helping me figure this out, nature can be so nasty at times and for us to figure it out is so hard.

Gina

You're right, Gina, nature can be cruel sometimes. It sounds like your set-up does not include a predator baffle and, to me, the habitat (with a stream nearby) sounds like ideal raccoon habitat. You say you found no blood or feathers, though, and this is a good sign. Raccoons definitely disturb a nest when they raid it, but there would almost definitely be feathers. In my experience, if your nesting was the victim of a snake attack, there would be no feathers or blood but the nest would not be disturbed, either. My best guess at this point, with the information you provided, is that something scared your bluebird pair enough for them to call the babies from the box. I think your mama blue is probably wherever the babies are.
I'm wondering . . . do you write down your nesting information? Do you know for sure that the nestlings were 15 days old? I have had nestlings fledge as young as day 16 before and they were fine but that was a late summer nesting and insects were so plentiful that the babies grew quickly.
I would suggest that you consider relocating your nestbox away from the stream and into a more open area, if possible. You definitely need to remount it onto a slick metal pole and equip it with a predator baffle. I use the stovepipe variety on all my 35 nestboxes. A pattern for the baffle can be found at www.sialis.org.
Please keep us posted.
Kathy

Sorry Gina This is heartbreaking. Kathy gives good advice. You need to get that pole baffled and you also need a sparrow spooker to protect your Blues. They are cheap and easy to make and you CAN do it. It is all on the sialis website.
Good Luck
Cathy

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.sialis.org

The good news is that you say they were "just about" 15 days, if "just about" could be 16,17 days or more they most likley fledged. The fact that Mom is no where to be seen and Pop is flying off with worms is a very good sign.
The bad news is something got to your box and if the babies were younger they didnt make it. The only way you will be able to figure it out is if you can go back and narrow down the date they hatched.Please take the advise given here and on sialis.org before you offer housing again.

Something to help you figure out how old they were, did you have babies on Mothers Day or just a day or two after? The closer to Mothers Day the better the chance that they are little flyers out in the big world!

Gina, I am so sorry about this. Like the others said how certain are you about the date of hatching? If you are still seeing the male is he taking the mealworms anywhere or is he just eating them himself. If he is taking mealworms away with him then maybe they did fledge. However it is extremely odd that you aren't seeing the female. If the babies fledged both adults would be taking the worms to the fledglings although they do take them some distance away at first. The absence of the female has be worried though and it does kinda sound like a raccoon though. This is my fourth year hosting blues, the first year I had older boxes mounted on wooden posts (like yours) which the blues used. First nesting was fine, then they moved to another box but still mounted on a wooden post. That nesting ended on day 12 from hatching with racoons getting the nestlings. Mine did not pull the nesting material out but I suspected them anyway. I didn't see any sign of struggle at all at first until I inspected the ground very very closely below the nestbox. I found about 3 pin feathers with blood on one end. I had seen raccoons around too. My adults were both still around though and we put up a properly mounted nestbox(metal pole with wobbling stovepipe baffle) and they did go on to renest again. I think above all else you need to get your nestbox mounted properly and just hope and pray that the fledged and mom is with them.

Donna

Thank you Kathy, cathy and Donna for your support and suggestions. Good news. The boyfriend and I were sitting out on the porch having a coffee after my hike/dog walk, and there in our big ole black walnut tree was Mamma and Daddy blue!! I ran into the house and got a cup of meal worms right away and walked down to the feeder calling them the whole way, they followed me and ate like piglets. I think it is obvious that the baby's are gone? but what I witnessed after they ate some worms is awesome. IM kind of laughing when I say this, please dont think Im a pervert or anything but there in the tree was Mamma and Daddy blue breeding away!! LOL. Of the five nest boxes we have I do not see any new nest materials so Dad has not started to build a new home. My boyfriend is going to get some stovepipe tomorrow and put it on all the houses. We are going to put up all the houses next year with electric conduit with a baffle then put them more in the open. They are in the open now but I dont think it is enough?
Anyway thank you all so much for your support, it helps so much. I learn more and more to help those flying blue beauty's everytime I post. I will stay in touch and pray that Mom and Dad choose another of our boxes (equipped with guards to keep preditors out)

Gina

Hey Gina, so glad you saw the female again but sorry about no fledglings. Funny how the male must want to get started on a new nesting so soon. Hopefully they will rebuild a nest and start over.

Donna

I feel as though I was rather selfish in my last post. I was so happy to see Mom blue again that it seemed I didnt care about the missing bab'ys? This is not true at all I am still so bummed that the baby's are missing.
I have however been witnessing something kind of strange. Now that Mom and Dad blue are eating worms again they are doing things that almost suggest the baby's are somewhere? they come to the tray and pig out on worms then Mom goes to a near by tree and Dad gets a big beek full of worms and flys off to Mom or a farther tree, they than stop coming to the feeder after that. But last night when Mom blue took her worms to the near by tree she then flew down to the ground and stayed their for awhile, I swear I heard the squaking of baby blues? its kind of noisy with traffic where our feeder is but when the cars stop going by for a little bit I really thought I heard those baby's?
Dad has not chosen another of our nest boxes so does anyone think that this is possible?, that maybe some or all of those fledglings made it? IM reading up on the sialis website to do as much as possible to protect my blues now and in the future. Everyone here has been so helpful, this whole thing is a learning process for me and I will do anything to help bring more blue birds safely into the world, I see now why they are an endandered species. So many other creatures want to mess with them. Thank you all for your help.

Gina

Gina I still say it is very possible that they did make it...If you could just narrow the hatch date down a little it would help. I don't know if you saw my post but if you can remember how close to Mothers day you noticed babies woud tell you. Going off to the trees with a beak full says they are feeding babies not themselves or each other. If they were feeding themselves or each other they would just be in a nearby branch not flying off with a beakfull of worms. The nest may have been attacked AFTER they were gone as the smell would still be there.

Definitely sounds to me like there are fledglings somewhere nearby. Keep feeding those mealworms and you just might get to see the babies in a couple of weeks. Believe me, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that you do!
Kathy

I've got to agree with the others. I think at least some if not all of them got out just in time. They won't bring the babies to the feeder for about two weeks. Do you have more than one box up I can't remember. They will be looking to nest again very soon and sometimes they will not return to a failed nesting site so another box would be good to have.
Cathy