Lol Donna. Unfortunately I don't have the time and dedication to feed the blues mealworms. However, one year the male lost his mate and had 4 nestlings to take care of, and I fed waxworms that were in a small cup on top of the box. Mr. Blue would grab one or two, then immediately go in to feed. When they ran out, he was chit chit chitting, as if to say "more worms, please!" I would think, however, that one or two days old would be too young for them to eat mealworms/waxworms. I'd think they'd only need a little food. I think I'm more concerned for the parents being able to feed themselves, but I've seen them dive for insects in 30-40 degree weather! Thanks for the feedback!

Thank you all! I was taking a little break, meanly too busy with too many things. >>I have tree swallows that like my purple martin house that fell down to about 6' above groundOh dear...everything still OK? >>How far away from the birds were you when you took the pic? About 2 feet, this picture was done with a cheap, second hand point and shoot camera Sony P43, about 4 megapixel, ....and was shot by itself by means of motion sensor/controlboard, camera needed to be hacked, 3 wires soldered inside and hocked up to motion board, this can be programed on how often pictures are taken. Camera and board is put inside a Pelican case/ sealed. 3 holes are drilled, one for flash, one for lens and one for sensor, glass is glued over for the lens and flash hole. Then all you need to do is put it up, in this case there was another tree beside the box, strapped on. Here another one, this one with a Sony P32...3 mega pix. Konrad

This thread is very interesting. Here I was thinking that maybe they chose that box because of the extra large vent in the top (perhaps to make feeding multiples easier?). But ken3592 may be onto something. I hadn't even noticed that that box is indeed shallower than most. Maybe that's why they chose it. I will be trying a shallower box next year for the TRES. I wonder if shallower, but deeper would also be attractive to them and help keep the hatchlings out of reach of avian predators.

Hi Sue, There is a "Tree Swallow Protocol" which describes how to set two or three bluebird boxes in such a way (distance and angles) so that a pair of each, BBs and TSs, will nest near one another, and protect one another from intruders of their same species. It's also used to get Tree Swallows, Blue Birdss, and Purple Martins to nest peacefully near (25-35 ft.) one another. You may have to muddle through the site, but it's worth the effort. I'm including a link. It really does work. In my case, I don't allow the TSs to nest in the PM rack. I will close off the gourd they want and move it about 30 feet away. If there are TSs nesting within 25-35 feet of the Purple Martin rack, they will not bother the martins, but they also won't allow any other TSs to come close. TSs win; PMs win; Carol's happy. Here is a link that might be useful: Tree Swallow Protocol for nesting birds