Sometimes it takes 4 or 5 days after the nest is built for the blues to start laying eggs. I strung fishing line on either side of the entrance hole. I used 4 tacks...two on the top on either side of the hole and two on the bottom. Just wrap the fishing line around the tacks on either side of the hole, close to the opening but of courses not blocking it. I found out how to do it online. I leave it there all of the time. That is supposed to help. I also use a sparrow spooker after the first egg is laid. I have 3 baby blues now.

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!

Amazing! I never gave much thought to the hatching process..that the Mom stands guard the whole time and keeps everything moving. I knew they ate the shells - partly for calcium I think, but had no idea about the "gentle pecking". Kind of like when they rub babies in the hospital I guess. Gets them moving and breathing. We are definitely going to install cameras next year! I know I'll never be able to match the camera work of some of you but it must be magical to watch all of these things take place. Thanks for sharing. tara

Well I was so busy I was unable to visit the forums for responses. Kendra I haven't heard or seen HOWR in the vicinity. To add to that, the blues and swallows laying are around 100 yards apart. This is my neighborhood backyard site that has 2 pairs spaced 20 ft between boxes and about 100 or so yards apart. Nor have I found any destroyed eggs. I had HOWR problems in the past and that's why I moved the boxes...they are in my neighbor's massive field. Okay...The TRES and Blues didn't lay any more eggs! The TRES still have just TWO and they don't appear to be incubating. the other TRES nest that has 4 eggs are still unhatched (presumably gone bad due to upper 40 degree weather a few days ago) Another strange thing...at site #2 the swallows layed just 3 eggs and not sure if THEY are even incubating! What it the world is wrong with my birds this year?! By the way, I now think I've lost 3 female bluebirds already this year! If I lose one more I will top last year's record! Which was 3 in one season! I saw the male bluebird perched on the sparrow spooker in the Am and the powerlines in the PM. No sign of Mrs. Blue. Really wish I knew. This is the STRANGEST nesting season ever! My bluebirds can't even manage to complete a clutch! I might not see nestlings this year if this keeps up:( Mr. Blue might decide to leave:(..........why?!