Hi Kathleen- I'll address you since the other posts are old. I am so very sorry that you have experienced this. Did you read what the responses were to the older post of one that lost a bluebird on the nest? I would just repeat everything that they said. If absolutely no sign of injury, I would suspect lawn pesticides, but considering what happened to the 1st person that posted & didn't see signs of injury on her bluebird, it did turn out to be house sparrows. I would highly suspect this. Do you think the female is dead too? If so, again I would be suspicious of HOSP. Answering your question, the male would not starve himself, nor is he able to brood eggs. If the female died too, the eggs wouldn't have hatched because the female is the one to incubate the eggs. She has a brooding patch on her lower abdomen that the male doesn't have. If she is alive, she may not be returning to nest because of the failed nest situation, especially if there was foul play. Make sure you know that she is not returning before removing the nest & eggs. If she is alive, she will probably try to find a new mate. Without repeating too much, make sure your birdhouse is on a pole with a baffle & put a sparrow spooker up after the 1st egg. If you know for sure that the nest has been abandoned & you don't get any activity, you may want to change the location of the box (birdhouse). If you immediately get a house sparrow setting up shop, then you'll know that was most likely the culprit. Again, if female is not returning, now would be the time to get a Van Ert trap for your house to trap the male & female HOSP. If you do, make sure you are monitoring every hour if possible so you don't trap a native bird. They can die in there if without food for too long. One of the previous posts left a website for the Van Ert trap. Again, the previous posts left great advice for your situation. This site is not as active as it used to be for bluebirders, so you may want to post to bluebirdnut.com. Lots of bluebird experts are on that site like this one used to have. That's where I go whenever I need advice. BTW, I lived in Atlanta for ten years (live in AL now). Very sorry to hear about your bluebird tragedy. Hope you'll have another pair come for a future nesting, but definitely get that sparrow spooker!

Boy,am I relieved.This morning at 6:15,I saw Daddy at the box,thought he just might be feeding Mom.I didn't want to check that early in case Mom might be laying another egg.Just now when I came home,I decided to check the box.Dad was in a nearby tree and when I opened the box,there was Mom sitting there all crouched down,nice and cozy.she never even moved.Needless to say,I closed the box quickly and left her alone.I was very relieved and excited.I have no idea if there are more than 3 eggs or not,just happy they are ok.Also on the way back to the house,I walked by a box that has been mounted on the side of the garage for a few years and has always gone unoccupied.My husband mentioned the other day that he saw a bird sticking his head out ,but was unsure what it was.As I walked by,I gently tapped and out came a white breasted nuthatch.How exciting,that is a first for me.Very cool.This box is difficult to open,so I will just have to leave it alone and enjoy.Glad to share some good news.....Jane

Hi Diane! I guess nobody knows the answer. A bad egg should not keep Mom from the nest. I have seen the females plop down into the nest in my nest cam box. I am suprised they have never squished a chick. I bet they could dent an egg. Maybe was laid that way? I would leave it. She wont abandon a whole clutch because of one egg. You know what to look for in the box that may keep her out. Go do a check. BTW nice to see ya!

Glenda...it's my therapy! I love all the native birds, and the cavity nesters (Purple Martins, Tree Swallows, Woodpeckers, Bluebirds, Chickadees, Nuthatches, etc.) most especially. The PMs eat only flying insects. They have beautiful songs and calls. They are always on the wing. They are so sweet and gentle and nest only near humans. They have "imprinted" on humans since before the time of Columbus. He discovered native American villages up and down the eastern coast with long poles hung with gourds around the areas. Insect control, beautiful birds and beautiful song. Socks...Yes, I'm registered with the Purple Martin Conservation Association. They track "landlords" submitted information on arrivals, dates, eggs, fledges, departures, etc., and the migration back to Brazil. They actually use doppler radar to check the early and late migrations, too. For a native bird that was brought almost to the point of extinction to now have a migration mass large enough to track is wonderful. I also belong to three other private Purple Martin forums that collect data and share information. OakleyOK...I've never had a problem with wasps in my gourds. Of course, my gourds are kept taken down, cleaned, and stored in the basement as soon as the chicks leave, usually around Aug. 1. I set the colony up again around April 15. I keep duct tape over the gourds' entry holes until the PMs actually arrive. That keeps the non-native vermin, such as starlings and English House Sparrows out.