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Babies gone! :) Will I get more??

17 years ago

Hi all! I am new to bluebirding, but have been very lucky so far. We put up four nest boxes the first week in June on our 2 acre property, and had a pair building a nest within a day! It was amazing! (Although I wonder if this is too many boxes for 2 acres, as only one box was used) No other birds have nested in the others, either, though. My pair had four babies who just left yesterday, but I can see/mostly hear them in the five mature trees near their box and still see mom and dad active in our yard. Now, will they nest again? I cleaned the box, and saw the daddy on another of our boxes for a bit. Will I get to see this amazing event yet again this year do you think? We're in northeast Indiana, about 30 min. west of Fort Wayne. I am disappointed that I can't get them to come to the feeder I bought for them, one with a cup for worms and a see through dome over the top. They ignore the dried mealworms, and I also put grubs in it to no avail. Also have homemade peanut mixture I read they liked, but they're not going for any of it. I put it on a shepherd's hook right in front of their box, and they ignored it! Any ideas for getting them to come eat at a feeder and do you think I'll have more babies yet this year?

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Comments (2)

donnalovesblue
17 years ago
Congratulations on your new blue fledglings! It may be getting a little late in the season for another nesting, but who knows! This is just my 2nd year to have them, and they've nested twice each season. Your location may have alot to do with whether they nest again or not. Some lucky ones get 3 nestings! My Mama began her first nest on 3/11 and her 2nd one on 5/24 and since the last brood left on 7/3, they are MIA!

Here's what I did to get them to the feeder when I first started feeding mealworms. I took the blue cup out and placed it where they seemed to frequently perch. Once they found it, I placed it back in the feeder and left the top off for a few days and it worked!. My blues have never come to the suet feeders since they are on the opposite side of my yard from the box, among other feeders. Occasionally, I have placed some crumbled suet next to the mealworm feeder but they never touched it. Many on this forum have the bbs at their suet feeders almost daily!

I think 4 boxes are just fine for your 2 acres, as long as they are properly spaced apart.

Again, so glad your babies made it!

Donna
kendra2003
17 years ago
Can you purchase some live mealworms. Seeing them wiggling should help them to see them as a food source. The top of my bluebird feeder is flat, so I was able to get them started by putting live mealworms on the top and letting them crawl around. Some of them certainly crawled off before the bluebirds found them, but it did help them recognize the feeder as a food source. I would think with a clear dome over the top, they should be able to see the worms moving around. Someone else will have to answer your other question as I have no idea if they will nest again this year in Indiana.
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