Linda you can make a new nest. My concern is what killed the older baby? Was he pecked? This may be one for Malinda or Bet. I have never heard of this.

Lisa,
Thank you, Lisa. I went to sialis.org and contacted Bet directly. She suggested making a new nest with a link to her website. I could not see anything that could have caused the bird's death. There was a dark spot on the side of his abdomen. The little bugs were already on him. I cannot even think of what may have happened. The parents did not seem concerned; the nestlings were hungry and begging for food. The parents went to the nestbox with the dead bird in it and fed their babies. They returned to the nestbox after I removed the dead bird and fed their babies some more. These are nervous parents, but for a change they did not seem upset while I was removing the dead bird. It is dark now and I will just hope for the best and deal with this tomorrow.

Linda C

Wow- I have not heard of this happening before. Sounds like the older nestling was helping out with this brood, which is not uncommon. Was his body "damaged" in any way? Any evidence of a fight? Was he bloated? He may have gotten into something wherever he was hunting for food that made him ill. This time of the year is tough on birds - people start applying weed killers, bug killers, etc to their lawns. Hopefully he didn't feed anything like that to the new nestlings. Perhaps in his hunting he had a close call and escaped a cat that caused an infection. That's all that comes to mind right now. Maybe someone else has an idea. Your new nestlings are a week old, so if you need to change the nest to remove the odor of the dead one, it should not be a problem for them. Just use the same material (pine straw or grass) that the female used when she built the nest. It is very important with any odor that there be a pole and baffle system to keep out raccoons who would be looking for a meal and would be attracted by the smell. Sorry this happened - wish there was some way to know for sure what transpired here. Hope your other nestlings do well. Malinda

Thank you Malinda. It is a mystery. I am totally organic in my yard, but no telling what those around me use. The bird from the first nesting may have sought refuge in the nestbox after being injured. We may never figure it out.

Linda

Linda I was thinking about this while making dinner. It's sad, but the fledgling making it back to where it felt safe and not alone when it died is somehow comforting.

The dark spot on the abdomen could have been bruising. Perhaps he was fending off an attack?? I'd like to think of the little guy as a hero of sorts.

This is indeed emotional stuff.

NOW I'm really sad. Raising BBs is an emotional job with many ups and downs, isn't it? Not for wimps, that's for sure!

Nope, not for wimps, that's for sure! Good thing you are monitoring frequently. As well as counting heads, I always try to note the nestlings' color, position, and breathing. We lost 2 nestlings from the last brood, to unknown causes, and they do stink up the place in a hurry. Usually, the parents will remove a dead nestling, but not always. If you cannot "make a new nest", the smell will eventually dissipate once the "dearly departed" has been removed. But broken eggs can be a bigger problem to remove.
Hang in there! The rewards almost always outweigh the downers.
BlueBars

Linda, I am so sorry but glad that you've gotten some good input here.

I'll second that, Bluebars..... not for wimps at all! I was an emotional wreck for the first three years of hosting box nesters!

Stay tuned. The story gets stranger today. Since it was dark when I finally got advice about making a new nest, I decided to deal with the situation today. Had to go to work at 7:00 A.M., but I was at the nestbox at dawn after leaving the Lord to guard the babies through the night. All 4 nestlings are fine and there is no odor of the "dearly departed." I'm home now and watching to see who feeds the babies the mealworms that I put out. In the past 2 weeks I have only seen 2 of the juveniles from the first brood visit the feeder with mom & dad. Today there are 2 juveniles helping mom and dad feed the babies.

There were 4 from the first nesting, but only 2 have been around since they started coming to the feeder with mom & dad. And that was definitely a dead juvenile bluebird in that nest last night. I think I've entered the twilight zone. Can someone shed any light?

Linda c

Linda C

Wow, what a strange situation!!!

I honestly don't have any ideas about this but wanted to say that I, too, am in the twilight zone protecting a pair of bluebirds from a killer HOWR (after having dealt with the HOWR with a nest of TUTIs).

The point is that no, monitoring boxes is not for those who are squeamish or easily upset. Nature unfolds in various ways, often incredibly beautiful but sometimes incredibly sad. If I counted the times I've shed tears over various tragedies...well, there's be a lot.

I trust that someone here can help you. Good luck!!

Blessings, Linda...

Thanks, Linda! I am lucky to only have to deal with HOSP. We do not have HOWR nesting this far south. From what I read on this forum, they are a real pain. At least we can take action against the HOSP. I'm really sad about that little bluebird, but at least I know that there are 2 remaining from the first brood.

Linda C