Thank you. :-)I was hoping you would see the post soon. We did manage to get them all back in the nest. I did not observe any mites while I had the chicks waiting for DH to take apart the house. I was checking for ant bites too. One lil fella probably wll die soon as his side seemed bloated...maybe from injuring something as he fell. The birdhouse is for bluebirds and does have a slope that the chicks may have wiggled up on and then out the hole. Mom and Dad starling were there within 5 minutes feeding them again. At least one of them was. The other parent seems to have a heck of a time getting in that hole(it was designed to keep them out)and just sort of stands around looking helpless. I just hate seeing fallen chicks and since I read on a bird rescue site that the parents will usually accept the baby even if you have touched them, I now return them to their nests. So far I have had good luck observing parents returning to nests that I have returned their babies to. If it looks like I may need to handfeed any at some point I will let you know so you can help me. Don't know if I would be able to as I do work full time though. I didn't realize dogfood would be eaten by the baby starlings. I had to give my pet bird handfeeding "formula" from a syringe. Do the starling babies just eat solid foods like that right away? ~Heidi

The only way I've found to keep them away is not to use any type of feeder they can access. No tray feeders and no hopper feeders big enough for them to perch on. I have a tube feeder and a mesh tube feeder for nyjer seed, a window feeder (too small for grackles and the like), and a Squirrel Buster Standard. The grackles come by once in awhile but there is nowhere for them to really get much of anything. Mostly they squawk their frustration and then I chase them off and I don't see them again for a few days. I saw one try to land on the squirrel buster - he sort of teetered there for a minute and then fell/flew off.

Surya, I just read "After the first molt, juveniles have grayish brown plumage with lots of white spots (see photo on left) on their head and breast, and they also have a brownish/blackish bill - they almost look like a different kind of bird. It is hard to tell sexes apart." here: http://www.sialis.org/starlingbio.htm.  Whwo, I'm thinking you might be correct. When I lived in Mississippi, the seasonal color difference was quite dramatic. But never have I seen both colors at the same time!

Wish I knew. At least those birds are all too big to enter your box. If you're feeding, do research & try not to feed what attracts them. Wish you & blues success! Nicole