I'm new here, but I've been reading a lot of posts to try to see if my question has already been answered. I'm also new at having bluebirds--we just put up the house this year. Each day, I see lots of activity at the house, with the dad feeding the babies. Pretty regularly, I walk out to the house to see if the mom is still in the house (so I'll know when to clean it out for the next nesters), and she flies out as soon as she hears me coming. Yesterday, I walked out to check on the nest for the first time, and the mom flew out when she heard me. I opened the house and saw three babies, who appear to be 9-10 days old, and two of them looked dead. One of them was barely moving its mouth open and closed. I got very upset, but then I read online that they can "play dead." Now I'm not sure if they were playing or not. Today, I've been looking at the house from afar and have seen almost no activity (the dad has flown up and looked in the hole a couple times), and when I walked up to the house, the mom did not fly out. I even tapped on it to see if she would come out. I'm so worried that they actually were dead! How does a beginner tell the difference between babies playing dead and actually being dead?
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baby Eastern bluebirds dead? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter mandyb771
- Start date
You obviously like having the birds there and care about their welfare so, at the risk of sounding like a grumpy old sod....... why go opening the house up and "tapping on the roof"? Just leave them be, and watch them from a distance. I'm sure you don't want to be responsible for making the parents desert their young ones.
By the way - welcome to birdforum! You'll find plenty of like-minded people here who enjoy birds.
Mike
That is (apparently, according to many bluebirding sites) an old wive's tale. Bluebirds are more used to human interaction than other species, and hundreds of people who have bluebird houses say to check every day. I obviously don't want to scare them away, but I'd rather know if something was wrong. After all, having a birdhouse requires cleaning it out and monitoring it, since the bluebirds don't do it themselves.
About the question, though....any way to tell if they are alive or playing dead?
Well - you might find quite a few "old wives" around here then!
No, you don't need to do this. Who cleans out a bluebird's nest if it chooses a natural nest site rather than a bird box?
Hopefully someone who knows more about bluebirds can tell you more about the "playing dead thing". Good luck.
Mike Oldwife
Hi Mandy and welcome to BirdForm.
I would strongly suggest that you tone down the daily checking on the bluebirds. As to cleaning out the nests, I have pairs that come back and use the same nest 2 - 3 times a season so there is no need to clean out until the breeding season is over.
I would strongly suggest that you tone down the daily checking on the bluebirds. As to cleaning out the nests, I have pairs that come back and use the same nest 2 - 3 times a season so there is no need to clean out until the breeding season is over.
birding maniac
Michael M
That's what I thought. Watch from afar, and when they have left you can clean out.
birding maniac
Michael M
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Mandy -
Hi there. I think its great that you are so involved with helping your bluebirds. I highly recommend you look at the website for the North American Bluebird Society, as they have much useful information.
http://www.nabluebirdsociety.org/
You are right about there being some myths out there about birds - but just because some human activity is tolerated by bluebirds, it doesnt mean it has no adverse affect on them. It is a stress to have humans at the nest.
Constant human presence can cause parents to abandon the nest site, or to delay feeding nestlings - as they do not like to enter a nest with a "predator" watching.
Interference while they are starting to brood can cause parents to leave the eggs or young birds for periods of time long enough to cause dangerous temperature fluctuations.
Generally, you should not check an active nest more than once a week. And you should never check a nestbox once the chicks are past 11 days old - as this causes them to fledge prematurely, decreasing their survival chances.
As for removing the old nest between broods- there is debate about whether this is necessary or not. Removing old nests also removes any harmful parasites that may be present - that much is true.
But leaving them encourages the wasps that prey on the parasite larva, which is a benefit to the birds and the general environment. It also gives the birds more time and energy to start a second brood, instead of rebuilding a new nest, or finding a new site if they feel the old has been compromised. I do not know if there is consensus among the "experts" about which is best - but unless you have actually seen blowfly larva, and know it is a problem, you can leave your nesting material there without worry.
It sounds like you should probably monitor from afar with binocs for now. I hope your brood manages to fledge successfully. In the meantime, keep your birdbath full and check out the fact pages on the bluebird society website for more info.
Hi there. I think its great that you are so involved with helping your bluebirds. I highly recommend you look at the website for the North American Bluebird Society, as they have much useful information.
http://www.nabluebirdsociety.org/
You are right about there being some myths out there about birds - but just because some human activity is tolerated by bluebirds, it doesnt mean it has no adverse affect on them. It is a stress to have humans at the nest.
Constant human presence can cause parents to abandon the nest site, or to delay feeding nestlings - as they do not like to enter a nest with a "predator" watching.
Interference while they are starting to brood can cause parents to leave the eggs or young birds for periods of time long enough to cause dangerous temperature fluctuations.
Generally, you should not check an active nest more than once a week. And you should never check a nestbox once the chicks are past 11 days old - as this causes them to fledge prematurely, decreasing their survival chances.
As for removing the old nest between broods- there is debate about whether this is necessary or not. Removing old nests also removes any harmful parasites that may be present - that much is true.
But leaving them encourages the wasps that prey on the parasite larva, which is a benefit to the birds and the general environment. It also gives the birds more time and energy to start a second brood, instead of rebuilding a new nest, or finding a new site if they feel the old has been compromised. I do not know if there is consensus among the "experts" about which is best - but unless you have actually seen blowfly larva, and know it is a problem, you can leave your nesting material there without worry.
It sounds like you should probably monitor from afar with binocs for now. I hope your brood manages to fledge successfully. In the meantime, keep your birdbath full and check out the fact pages on the bluebird society website for more info.
That is normal behavior with the parents helping it to get out on its own
