100% complete totals!

Total bluebirds fledged: 44
Babies that died: 4
Unhatched eggs: 3

Nest totals:
C1: 5 fledged
C2: 11 fledged
C3: 4 fledged
C4: 9 fledged
C5: 5 fledged
C6: 5 fledged
R Family box: 5 fledged

It's the end of the nesting season. Check in again next year as we expand our bluebird trails! Enjoy the rest of your summer and keep checking the sky and trees for beautiful bluebirds! Thanks everyone!

Bees Are MEAN!

Let's get straight to the update, so I can explain the title.

C1: taken down last week

C2: nothing new going on here

C3: BEES ARE MEAN!!!!!!!!!! A story: we were doing our checks as usual, and box three was the only one we really had to check because there were small babies in it. So we got to the box and saw something sticking it's head out of the box. But when we got out of the car, we saw a SWARM of bees around the nest. My brother tried to hit the box to see if he could get the bees away, but when he hit it, more bees flew out. stupid bees. They had suffocated the baby birds inside or stung them to death, invading the bluebird box. That entire nest was lost including the 4 babies inside.

C4: nothing new

C5: nothing new

C6: no check this week, birds are still fledging
check in next week for grand totals and total number of birds fledged!

More babies!

We are concluding the bluebird project in the next week or two.
So here's an update of the boxes.
C1: we took this box down because there were 15 bees flying in and around the nest
C2: nothing new going on here
C3: three tiny baby birds and an egg. the birds were tiny so there is still hope that the one egg will hatch.
C4: nothing new flying around here
C5: same as it has been
C6: bigger baby birds, 5 of them! :)
Nothing new went on in any of the other boxes. The ones that do not have nests now are pretty much done with their seasons.

Round 1/2

No, not round half, but the end of round one and the start of round 2 for the birds nesting season!

Updates from yesterday's check:

C1: 5 more birds successfully fledged! This was amazing to us because the first time we checked, there were 3 birds, 2 egg and the second time, we couldn't tell if all the birds had hatched. But no eggs were left in the nest, meaning 5 successful birds!

C2: round two for this nest and we've got baby birds! hopefully six of them, but they were too tiny to tell if all of them had hatched.

C3: 4 eggs, a somewhat smaller nest, but an incubating mother

C4: empty

C5: empty

C6: Round one for this new box. 5 young babies AND a mother nesting...check out the picture...the mother was in the nest WITH her babies

R Family box: no new nest after emptying it last week

School box: clean like usual

All other boxes have same status as before.

Just for reference, all pictures were taken by me and only me.

Don't forget to comment if you have a question, concern, or comment!

Thanks!

Flying totals ;)

Current Eggs: 18 eggs
Fledglings: 18 (plus 5, assuming all eggs in C1 hatched, and 5 more assuming all R Family birds fledged)
Current babies: none
Number of boxes on second nesting (regardless if nest or not): 5
Current nests (not including those with fledglings): 4
total meal worms used: 69 (rough approximate :D)
Number of boxes placed: 11
Number of boxes in use: 7

what else do you want to know? =]

Round 2

All but two boxes are moving on to round two of nesting.
C1 and R Family Box were uncheckable this week because they were finishing up round one and the birds were fledging.
C2: six eggs in the nest, mother and father birds nearby hopefully babies next week :)
C3: new nest with two eggs in it!
C4: five eggs
C5: nothing, empty again
C6: five eggs (impressive for a brand new box!)
school box: absolutely empty...again *sigh* bluebirds have been seen at school, just not in this box
all other boxes remain unused
not much going on this week with the bluebirds, hopefully some pictures and babies next week! :)

Birds in Motion

Yupp, that's right, photographing the bluebirds in motion was my goal for this week's check. I think i was pretty successful, got about 5 or 6 really great pictures. Check out the best one below!

Normal box updates:

C1: last week, 3 babies had hatched, this week, the babies were much bigger, and it was impossible to tell how many eggs/babies there were.

C2: Last week, we saw two nests after the birds had fledged. This week, there were SIX EGGS!!! hopefully all six will hatch into bluebirds :)

C3: four bluebirds successfully fledged. One egg was left, meaning our previous count of 5 babies was incorrect. A new nest had also formed!

C4: last week we cleanedout the box from the fledglings and this week a new nest was formed with one egg!

C5: box remained empty after the fledglings left two weeks ago

C6: New box with an active nest. No clue as to how many eggs because the mother bird was nesting when we went to check!

R Family box: no check this week because the birds are fledging

All other boxes remained the same...don't forget to check for more exciting bluebird news next week!

Fledglings

Yupp, box checking time again. And yupp, more exciting news! This week we did it on Friday, so as not to disturb the Memorial Day celebrations at the cemetary.

All the boxes were checkable except for box number three, which had babies in the process of fledging. so here's an update:

C1: 3 tiny tiny babies, just born and 2 eggs. who knows if the eggs will hatch, the babies were just born, so there is still a good chance the eggs could hatch. One of the babies was just waking up from a 'nap' and opened his mouth, then laid his head back down on one of the unhatched eggs. CUTEST THING EVER!!! look at the picture!

C2: Last week, we couldn't check this box because the birds were fledging, but we checked this week, and the birds were all gone! FIVE NEW BLUEBIRDS! :) but even more extraodinary was the fact that the birds had built a nest on top of the old one! You could clearly tell where one nest was and where the other one was. We took the bottom, used nest out of the box and put the newer nest on the bottom. If the nests get too close to the top, the birds could get squished. It also give them a higher chance of losing their babies out the hole.

C3: no check this week, or next week. hopefully when we check them again, there will be five more birds gone

C4: this was the first week to check this box after the birds fledged. good news! FOUR MORE FLEDGLINGS, meaning four more bluebirds are out there in the world! We cleaned out the nest and hung the box back up, ready for another nest.

C5: this box we emptied last week, but this week, no new nest had started being built yet

C6: new box that we hung last week in the middle of boxes 4 and 5, and this week, there was a nest! it was really developed, so hopefully we'll have eggs next week :)

We also checked the other boxes around the city. The R family box had bigger babies this week than they did last week. We can't check that box for two weeks now as the babies grow and fledge.

After this week, our count stands at: 14 fledged bluebirds, 2 new nests, 2 eggs, 8 babies (at different stages), and hopefully by the end of next week, 5 new fledglings :)

Stay-at-home Birds

Hey everyone!

Thanks so much for following this blog and being interested in the bluebirds!

We checked most boxes today...some very exciting news

C1: last week there were five eggs, still five eggs and some very active parents this week

C2: no check because the birds are in the process of fledging

C3: some VERY big babies...check out the picture at the top, they have lots of feathers and are fully aware of what is going on, this is the last time we get to check on those babies

C4: same as C1, no check because they are fledging

C5: this box had not been checked for two weeks while the birds were fledging. We checked this week and all the birds had left! that means somewhere out there are five new bluebirds that we helped bring into the world. how cool is that? we cleared out the nest and hopefully a new nest will be built soon.

C6: yupp that's right, we finally added another box to the cemetary. It is right outside the fenced off area and as soon as we put the box up, bluebirdds flew into the tree. hopefully this box will get some activity soon!

We also check the R family box today and they have five new baby bluebirds. They are tiny meaning they probably hatched a few days ago. When we opened the box, they opened their tiny beaks saying "feed me! feed me!" okay, not really, but they did open their beaks for food. The picture above is of the R family babies.

Like usual, none of the other boxes have any activity. The box at school will be checked tomorrow.

Like usual, if you do have any questions, comments, concerns, comment here!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there! (including our lovely bluebird moms that have been busy at work caring for their new chicks!)

We checked bluebird boxes today, and it was super crowded at the cemetary so we couldn't hang a new box, but we will for sure next week. Here's a run-down on all the boxes:

C1: last week had a fully developed nest, this week FIVE EGGS! hopefully we'll see babies here in the next few weeks.

C2: Last week we had 5 little baby chicks, this week they are a bundle of fuzz. check out the picture to the right. They were all bundled up at the front of the box, so we had to snap pictures quickly in order for them not to fall out. Their eyes are open and they have grown big enough to where their beaks don't take up 50% of their body.

C3: A mother bird was incubating her eggs last week when we checked this box. Today, five little tiny babies chirped happily from inside their cozy nest. In the picture, you can see their eyes, beaks, and fuzz on the tops of their heads. The scaly leg looking things are the beginnings of their wings...cool huh? :)

C4: Like box 2, th

ere were little babies last week, and this week, there were BIG babies, bigger than the fuzz balls in box 2. Sadly, there were only four babies, one fell from the nest and died (proof on the ground). We won't be checking either box 4 or box 2 again for two more weeks, to make sure the babies do not fledge early. Picture to the right is of these babies. Note their feathery-ish heads, beaks, and eyes.

C5: Though we could not check this box today, we still drove by it. We could hear the chirps of the babies on the inside from the ground, which was pretty cool. We put some mealworms on the ground for the mom and dad birds and watched them dive down and pick them up for their babies. We will be able to check this box either next weekend or the weekend after.

R family box: our only active box that is outside the cemetary had five eggs in it. Next week when we check, there should be tiny babies.

the school box has not been checked yet this week.

another box will be added to the cemetary to accomodate the new bluebirds, but it was hectic on mother's day, so we'll wait until next week :)

Meal(worms)s on Wheels

Hello again! Schools has been hectic lately, so not much time to post!

So since my brother went out of town on Friday, we checked boxes on Thursday this week...exciting news!

C1: previously had twigs and feathers, a start of a nest...but this time...a FULL NEST and active bluebirds around the nest...hopefully there will be eggs next week

C2: previously 5 eggs, this time 5 BABIES!!! All five hatched and have fuzzy little heads and bright yellow beaks...they were sleeping when we visited (yes sleeping, not dead, they were moving and breathing :D) the picture is of the C2 babies.

C3: still 5 eggs and active bluebird parents, same as last week...babies by next week for sure

C4: 5 MORE BABIES!!! also cute little fuzz balls with extremely distinct eyeballs...they were also sleeping and all 5 babies hatched. check out the picture to see these babies' eyes. These ones (to the left) are a lot smaller than the ones from C2, meaning they were probably born a few days after them.

C5: last week, this box had the first babies of the spring with the newly hatched 5 bluebirds and one dormant egg. this week, the one dormant egg was still there, but the 5 babies were so much bigger! more than double their size, making it easier to photograph them. In the

picture, you can see the wings and the five babies, though you can see three distinctly. This

box will not be checked for the next two weeks to prevent the hatchlings from fledging early, which nearly always means death for the little baby birds. However, after that, the bluebirds can use the box again for another nest.

R Family box: As said in the post from before, the mother bird was incubating her eggs on Wednesday when we checked it. We went back today to see if we could get a count of the eggs. There are 5 eggs in that box, which will hopefully hatch in the next week or two.

The other boxes were empty, as usual. This week, we also hung a box at school, which I already posted. There is a possibility of adding another box near the R Family box for the new bluebirds that will soon hatch from their nest. Also, we were thinking about adding another box or two to the cemetary to accomodate the bluebirds living there. Hopefully we'll start to see some activity in the other boxes soon too!

After Thursday's check: Total eggs: 26 eggs (1 dormant), Total babies: 15, Total boxes in use: 6, one new box hung

Don't forget, if you have any comments, questions, concerns, requests, anything at all, just leave a comment on the post and I'll make sure to respond! :)

Thanks for being interested!

The father bluebird lands on the bluebird box to eat the mealworms we left for him. Later, he will regurgitate them back to his babies. Both the mother and the father take an active role in rearing the young bluebirds.

Eggs and a mother bird

Hi everyone!

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days...this isn't actually from Wednesday but this is when the news was from, so I figured I'd post it anyway :)

So today (Wednesday) my brother and parents went to go check the R Family box because there was a full nest before. Guess what? There was a full nest PLUS a mother bird incubating the eggs! We couldn't get a count of the eggs because the mother bird was sitting on them, so hopefully when we go tomorrow to check the rest of the boxes, we can see.

Here's a picture of the mother on her eggs! (that picture is from Thursday's check of the R Family box)

Actual News

Above picture is of a male bluebird (top) and female (below) sitting on a branch. While we were checking the boxes, the two birds hovered near by to make sure their eggs were not being harmed. Bluebirds are extremely forgiving of human contact with their babies and eggs.

Yes, I have an actual news update today, even though I did not go check boxes.

Bluebirds have been sighted at school, by me and my brother both. We wanted to hang two boxes there, but we don't really have large trees far enough apart from each other. So, my bro hung one box up today. Look for it...it's in the middle of the front of the school in a big pine tree. It's light blue and looks like a birdhouse ;) Hopefully we'll get some bluebirds in there soon!

More news! Yesterday (or maybe Saturday?) I told you about how the R Family box had a nest in it. So today my brother and mom went to go check it, and it turns out it IS a bluebird nest! It has TWO EGGS in it! Very Exciting! That brings our count up to: 5 baby birds, 23 total eggs, and only 1 dormant egg.

That's about all the bluebird info I have for today. We are checking boxes again on Thursday, before bro leaves for the weekend, so a detailed post will go up then.

Don't forget that if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or just want to know more about the bluebirds, feel free to leave a comment on the blog!

Thanks for being interested!

Pictures!

Seeing as this is a relatively new site, I haven't really gotten a chance to show you pictures of the bluebirds. So, in between checking the boxes, I'll put some pictures up here and give you some bluebirds facts!

So this picture is of a male bluebird perched on his box. In his mouth is a mealworm. We leave a few mealworms on the tops of the boxes for the birds, but usually the male bird eats them, or brings them back to the nest for the female who is incubating (as seen there). If feeding the birds mealworms, make sure to buy medium sized,

plain mealworms.

To the right is a typical bluebird nest. They usually lay between 4-6 light blue eggs, but 5 is the most common. Bluebirds are deep-cavity nesters, meaning they like to build nests in deep holes. When building their nests in boxes, the cavity is usually a deep circular shape.

Both parents take an active part in bringing up the babies. The male will go find food while the female incubates and bring it back to the nest for the mother. The parents are very protective of their young and the father usually perches near-by the nest while the mother is incubating in order to protect her from predators. Bluebirds are great parents to their little babies!

Babies part 2

When checking the boxes yesterday, my camera died before I could get pictures of the baby bluebirds in box number 5. So we went back to the cemetary today to see if I could get good pictures. Let me tell you, photographing tiny baby bluebirds is no easy task. That was the best I could do because they were squirming. Can't use flash because it will harm their health. Unfortunately, one of the eggs didn't hatch. So we have a total of 5 baby birds in one box. The box with the mother bird sitting on its eggs (picture from yesterday's blog) has 5 eggs in it, as do the other 2 active nests in the cemetary (2 and 4).

Exciting news! C1 has activity! There are some twigs and feathers in the bottom of the box, the start of a nest! :) hopefully there will be a full nest by next week.

We also went and checked the other boxes around the city. We took down one box from Fairmont, due to inactivity. We also took down one box from Mrs. S's house, also due to inactivity. These boxes will be relocated to school in Cypress.

More exciting news! While checking the other boxes, we found activity in a nest

at the R Family house. They had a full nest. Although it looks like a bluebird nest, we are not sure and will have to see if it develops into a sparrow nest or if there are eggs next week.

Fun bluebird fact of the day: For all of you non-bluebirder watchers...How can you tell the difference between a male and female bluebird? The most obvious way is by their colors. Male western bluebirds are a bright blue color. On the other hand, females are not as brightly colors, more of a brown-gray color with a tint of blue. Also, western bluebirds have a rusty red patch on their belly, while eastern bluebirds and mountain bluebirds do not. Can you tell what the bluebird above is?

Babies!

Above: a mother bluebird sits on her five eggs. Bluebirds lay all of their eggs, one each day at dawn, before incubating. A normal nest includes 5-7 eggs. They incubate their eggs for 15-22 days after laying the last egg.

We went to go check bluebird boxes at the cemetary today.

Run down of the cemetary boxes:

--C1: empty box, no activity, but hopefully after the babies fledge, that box will get some use

--C2: a nest with 5 eggs, last week, the nest had 1 egg

--C3: mother sitting on nest (picture above), number of eggs unknown

--C4: a nest with 5 eggs, last week it had 3

--C5: FIVE BABIES! Newly hatched, a little before checking. the cracked eggshells were still in the nest and the babies were opening their mouths for their mother to feed them (compared to the rest of their bodies, their mouths are HUGE!) sadly, my camera died before being able to snap some pictures of them, so we are going back tomorrow to check up on them. Hopefully the sixth egg will have hatched and we can get pictures of all six babies.

Hopefully next week we will have another nest or two with babies. It's amazing how such a tiny little egg grows into the beautiful bluebirds flying around Orange County.

Side note: Bluebirds were sighted by both my bro and I at our school in Cypress. There is a possibility of hanging one or two boxes at the school for the birds to nest.

Welcome!

Hello! I am doing a conservation project for Boy Scouts of America. I am trying to increase the bluebird population in Orange County by building boxes for the birds to nest, then monitoring them every week.

I am working with the Southern California Bluebird Club and get most of my information regarding bluebirds and procedures on handling the boxes from them.

Over the summer, I built ten boxes with my BoyScout troop, according to the specifications provided by the SCBC. We painted them a light blue color, because the bluebirds prefer this color, and numbered them so that they would be easier to track on the map.

I currently have a total of ten boxes. 5 are located at a cemetary, which provides open areas and plenty of food for the bluebirds, and the other 5 are scattered around a few different cities, sort of as an experiment to see if the bluebirds will live in more urban areas.

I have been monitoring boxes since October 2008. My sister is the historian and photographer of the team and we set up this blog to keep track of the bluebirds and help to educate others about bluebirds in general and how to start their own bluebird trail.

Enjoy following the bluebirds and if you have any questions, feel free to comment!