Service Project Update: Bluebird Monitoring

 Certified Master Naturalist, Christine Boran, sends this update on the Woolwine Bluebird Trail.

“An Unusual Cavity”

By Christine Boran, Patrick County

 

Along the Woolwine House Bluebird Trail, I have a few Virginia Bluebird Society grant boxes in a public park.  Bluebirds usually are the users of those nestboxes.  At Nestbox 40, a Tree Swallow quickly moved in a few days after the first bluebirds fledged.  That usurped the bluebird couple building nest #2.  That bluebird couple then moved into the nearby park’s pet waste station and built a nest inside the green metal "cavity", which was void of the waste bags for the dog walkers.  They laid 4 eggs.  I became concerned as how to protect it from the numerous avian, reptile, and mammal predators at the park (including some worry about humans, too) with the metal box 3.5 feet from the ground.  How does one protect that station from predators?  I kept a watch several times a week.  The four eggs hatched and during the hottest period of the summer. I then had to make a sudden trip out of town.  After returning from my trip, I walked by the pet waste station in the park to peer in to get an update if they survived.  To my surprise, I was there during the fledging!  One fledgling was left in the station, and I heard the other youngsters in the nearby tree.  The parent birds were upset with me that I was anywhere near the nest in the station.   I actually like that—it’s a good sign of the health of the parent birds and their natural instinct to protect their young.  We know bluebirds are opportunists and have been resourceful nesting in the most interesting and unusual cavities they sometimes find.  I am glad they made it into the world and hope the best for them to survive their first year.  I will add another trail nestbox to this public park this autumn.  I will get permission from the County first.  Many locals asked me if I knew about the birds nesting there, including the walkers in the park and the community’s Postmaster.  It indeed takes a village. 

Photos by Christine Boran