This can potentially leave the new nest dangerously close to the entrance hole, … Our boxes are designed with lots of ventilation so that bluebirds don’t “cook” inside the boxes in the summer heat. Every time Kathy Kremnitzer lifts the lid of a bluebird birdhouse, she says it’s as exciting as opening a present. Life history. When they are not nesting, these birds roam the countryside in small flocks. Bluebirds and other cavity nesters often use nest boxes in the winter for nightly roosting. At times, they gather in flocks of a hundred or more. Bluebirds primarily eat ground-dwelling insects so a yard or garden that Living in more open terrain than the other two bluebirds, this species may nest in holes in cliffs or dirt banks when tree hollows are not available. Bluebirds do not remove old nesting material, rather they simply build over an existing nest. February is when: Bluebirds return and begin look for mates and nesting sites. It often seeks its food by hovering low over the grass in open fields. We diligently brought double portions of mealworms out to our bluebird … The entire nesting box can be constructed from a one-by-six inch board roughly 5-feet long. By Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman. Although the actual egg laying and incubation cycle begins later in the spring, clean, Sparrow-resistant nesting boxes should be up now !! March – April… Be sure to follow exact building specifications to ensure that the box is made correctly and safely. When do baby blue tits leave the nest? Eastern bluebird in Huntley Meadows Park in Virginia. You SHOULD NOT open the box for monitoring after the 13th day after hatching or the chicks might fly from the box prematurely. In the Spring, the female lays 1-6 eggs, one a day. We’ve got seven easy tips and answers to your questions. Attracting bluebirds with nest boxes is one way backyard birders can make a difference. VBS is affiliated with The North American Bluebird Society (NABS) and is a Chapter of the Virginia Society of Ornithology (VSO). The powder-blue male Mountain Bluebird is among the most beautiful birds of the West. Start a new trail! If bluebirds do remain in a region for the winter, they group and seek cover in heavy thickets, orchards, or other areas in which adequate food and cover resources are available. “I have the joy of getting an inside look at Mother Nature,” Kathy says. A high percentage of Eastern Bluebirds in North America today nest in birdhouses put up especially for them along "bluebird trails." … Birds usually do not abandon their nest if your inspections are very brief and infrequent. Some species like the bluebird build more than one nest and more than one brood during the breeding season; they are known to as many three sets of young during the season.