Bird Watching Binoculars

A Landmark Bluebird Achievement

First Time In Four Years

As I have mentioned before in my Dark Legacy post, for the last four years or so I have had a bluebird pair with some type of genetic defect.  This theory was backed up when Julie Zickefoose suggested I crack open an unhatched egg and confirm there was no viable chick in it. They would build a nest in my box, lay eggs and then the heartbreak began.  Without predation, some of each clutch of eggs would just not hatch.  Then, of the two or three that did, only one and rarely two would actually fledge.

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My Bluebirds Have Made A Nest

Update 5/15/10: The feeding frenzy finally came to an end so I thought I’d check the box today.  As far as I can tell all 5 bluebirds successfully hatched and fledged the nest.  I’ll have another post this week about it as this is an historic moment in my bluebird stewardship!
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Rest In Peace Little One

I wish that I were writing this under happier circumstances.  I wrote previously about my little titmouse patient where I told you how he seemed to have bonded with me.  He would come to the window and land in the pane so he could see if I were there.  He had degraded from coming down for a treat and flying away to coming down and hanging around on my patio which was not a good sign.
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My Little Titmouse Patient

I recently wrote about creating a monster in my backyard.  It started with one amusing little titmouse that came to my hand to feed.  That’s all, just feed.  Soon, others joined him.  I’ve fed a total of 3 different titmice since he started.

Within the last week, his behavior changed.  No longer was he looking for me and coming down to grab a bite and return to his perch.  Now, he was coming down, grabbing something and taking it onto different places on my patio.  I didn’t think anything at first but now I see he’s not well.
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The House Wrens Have Returned

As I had posted last week, it seemed like my house wrens had disappeared.  They had built a nest, incubated eggs, fledged young and even rebuilt a nest for a second brood.  Then, they were nowhere to be seen or heard.  If you’ve ever had house wrens during mating season in your backyard then you know it’s impossible to miss them.  The male sings almost nonstop even after he’s attracted a mate.  When that singing stopped I got suspicious and I had to investigate.
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My Dark Bluebird Legacy Lives On

I was so thrilled when a pair of bluebirds finally decided to make a home in my second bluebird box again this year. I hoped that my resident pair had moved on or died as cruel as that sounds. The reason is it is heartbreaking to see all their work go for near nothing. Thanks to Julie Zickefoose, I learned the pair probably had a genetic problem of some kind.  These two have laid as many as five eggs only to have one or two fledge and rarely more than one live.
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