i was reading this thread with interest. i have a situation where it appears i have 8 bluebirds who have hatched in one nest (thursday may 2, they were born). it may be 9, it's hard to tell. while monitoring the nest in late april i noticed what appeared to be eggs missing from the 3 that had been laid earlier in that week. the reality was that the eggs had been pushed down deeper into the nest and covered with pine straw. the mother kept coming back (may have been another species coming in and covering the egg with straw? i have seen no house sparrows here at all) and eventually she started laying again. turns out, there were 10 eggs total in this nest when she was done! i guess five from the first attempt and 5 after that. bottom line, 8 babies are in there now. i'm putting out meal worms twice a day and making sure there's lots of water nearby in the bird bath, and plenty of shelled sunflower seeds for the parents nearby in that feeder. anyone ever seen or heard of a situation like this?

Sounds like you really have some challenges. You have my sympathies! A tiny poked hole is more likely a house wren's thin sharp beak, sometimes taking them some distance away, or simply tossing them out. The house sparrow will toss the eggs out, but their finch-like beak would not as likely make a tiny poke hole. And the HOSP is more likely to stick around, harass, or even take over the cavity. "Do BB's destroy their own eggs" ... No "the nest possibly could have been flooded?" ... are there leaks that could be fixed? "Are the HOSP really sneaky" ... yes, but HOWR are sneakier ... "and resistant to the Sparrow Spooker?" ... yes, and house wrens will not be deterred by a sparrow spooker. House Wrens are even sneakier, faster and silent, leaving no evidence behind, only destroying eggs or young. You might hear them singing, but might never, ever see them! There are some links to sound files of house wren song and chatter on Bet's web pages, so you can learn to hear the unwelcome sounds of house wrens. Visit Bet's web page for more info. And by the way, the Carolina Wren is a very different bird, welcome almost anywhere; not a threat to other birds. BlueBars Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.sialis.org/index.html

My guess would be that the hatchlings died and the parents disposed of them. I've seen this on numerous occasions--especially during a cold, wet spring. We once had a pair nesting in a yew right under our window. We watched them sit and hatch 4 nestlings. One week the weather turned, and the nestlings died. We watched as one of the parents picked up a dead chick and flew off. I guess that explains why occasionally you'll find a dead baby bird in the middle of nowhere. I think this has been a particularly tough spring. I've noticed more failed nesting attempts at our houses than usual.

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!