Well first thing I would do if you don't see the adults taking food into the nestbox nor away to the trees is check the nestbox, just open very slowly and listen for sounds from the box. If it is empty clean it out asap, cause if something happened to the fledglings they will want to start another nest and should have a clean box to do so.
Good luck
Donna

Yes , I would check the box.I have had them do this before,and sure enough,there was a dead nestling in the box.I also had it happen a few weeks ago,when I had 3 nestlings die in a box,because of a cold rainy week.They were hanging very close to the nest box in both cases just as you describe.Check it.You also state that you saw the last babies leave the nest over the weekend.Either way this box should be checked/cleaned.Maybe there is a nestling in there unable to fledge for some reason.

Matt

Have you had a chance to check? I am wondering what you found out.

We checked the box and the nest was flattened completely. We had gone out to purchase and prepare a new bluebird box and a new post as the old one was warping. We removed the old nest and took out the pool and house to dig a deeper hole for the new house. The parent stood by the entire time we did this. There were no babies left in the box, however, at the very bottom of the nest we did find one egg that did not hatch. We don't think this is why the parents kept coming back. We do think they just wanted to keep a claim on the box. Well, within two minutes (before we even got back to our house) the male flew back to the new house and both parents have been flying back and forth for the last four days. The male keeps looking inside the box and if any other bird attempts to come near, they are quickly chased away by the male. We are anxiously awaiting for them to start building their new nest. They may be still feeding their babies who should be pretty well on their own by now. It was interesting how they watched us as we installed their "new house" and immediately returned to it. I'll keep you posted and hopefully building will begin soon. We saw them do this before they built their last nest. It took days for them to actually start building. We checked and checked and finally started to see the female bringing in nesting material. Hope it happens soon. It has been very hot here - temperatures around 90 and above. Lots of baby cardinals, bluejayss, etc. coming around our feeders near our house. Everyone is quite busy! And the babies are quite insistent on being fed even though some are a large as their parents.

OMG too funny. I had to read that a few times. You "took out the pool and the house " I'm thinkin thats a really BIG hole! Took me a minute to realize thats the POLE and the box right! Im the worlds worst typist and I am sure I have made more than a few folks scratch thier heads. Hope you get a new nesting soon! : )

I know. I tried to go back and edit right away but the system would not let me. Where is spell check when you need it. I did mean "pole and box". But, we do have a pool! ;) And, I meant "parents" instead of "parent"! That's what happens when I do things in such a hurry. My hands do not keep up with my brain. I'm sure I'll make plenty of mistakes!

LOL! That was really funny and like you I need a spell check here, but it still would have come up POOL. LOL Nothing ever keeps up with my brain either. I love the saying "Bad spellers and dyslexcits of America Untie"! ;D

Just curious, you said in the first post that the babies had fledged 3 days prior but feeding stopped four days prior. Adults feed the babies for at least 2 weeks "after" fledging and often longer than that. Sometimes after about a week the female will stop feeding them as she will be starting her second nest but the male keeps feeding them. What is your nestbox mounted on? You mentioned post and then pole. Do you have it baffled? Just asking cause my first year bluebirding I had my box mounted on a wooden post and on the Blues second nesting a raccoon got the babies 5 days before fledging. The nest wasn't messed up at all as by that time it wasn't flatted but on very careful inspection I had found some pin feathers on the ground (like 2) so I knew it was raccoons. We put up a new house and the parents started building right away on a new nest.

Oh and raccoons can and will climb up metal poles too, that is why they need to be baffled.

Just making sure everything is ok with your nesting in case you actually lost the first one without realizing it.

Donna

I meant that they stopped feeding at the box, not feeding the babies in the nearby trees, which is where I was told they would go. I'm trying my best to keep track of everything by date as I am new to this great experience. We actually saw two of the four leave the box together. I did not witness the other two leave the nest but feel confident four survived. Well, as best I can determine at this point. We have the box mounted on a cedar pole (4 x 4)with the opening to the nest box at exactly 5 feet as instructed and do plan on constructing a baffle. We've never seen a raccoon in the area, but that does mean they aren't around. We have everything from deer, fox and wild turkey and even had a visit from a black bear last year.

Whew, well that is good that you saw them fledge and are still around. Raccoons are everywhere! Just remember coneshaped baffles don't work for raccoons. Stovepipe works best but I don't know if it would wobble enough on a 4x4 post. Good luck!

Donna

I'll try a new "written post" asking if anyone uses a "wooden post" as I know someone told us what to do in the beginning or my husband read it somewhere. Darn, just can't remember. Thank you for the information about the cone shaped baffle as I was about to use one we have and try to make it fit. Now I'm worried. Thank you again for your help!