Adirondacks and ...The Mice Invade!

Here are a collection of photos I have taken over this nest watch season. Yesterday when I arrived on site, I didn't see any swallows or bluebirds anywhere. Every nest was empty of birds. Most boxes showed signs of birds vacating the nest. Flattened nest with fecal matter on the bottom. All the young birds have fledged successfully. The new occupants were not expected. Mice. Four vacant boxes have been taken over by these rodents. I am considering evicted them, but the nesting season is winding down. Next week, the mice may need to find a new home. Below are some photos I took of Blue Mountain Lake on vacation:

Adirondacks: Mobile Update

This is my second day in the Adirondacks. The first day held little promise for any adventure at all because of a rainstorm. Today however, was quite the opposite. I spent the day on the water. Blue Mountain Lake is a body of water situated near the heart of the park. While I was boating, I got some pictures of the lake. I will post them when I'm on a computer.

Bluebirds Hatched

After waiting in vain for weeks for a bluebird to hatch, the wait is over. 4 live bluebird young are currently residing in one of my boxes. The 5 eggs next door are still unmoving and I am considering removing them to make way for a new family. This week, I will be unable to monitor the boxes because of severe weather we are experiencing here. Next week, I will be in the Adirondacks and will not be able to check on them. If they are still in the nest box by the time I get back, there will be great changes in there appearance and size. I will try and get good pictures. (If my camera allows it) I will also be on the lookout for wildlife in the Adirondack State Park. Check my blog for pictures and stories about the park in the following weeks.

More Eggs...and Chickadee Troubles

When last I visited my nest boxes, I was disappointed to see that the 5 eggs did not hatch. I was happy to see one bluebird egg in the box next door. You can imagine my surprise upon opening that same box to find that 3 more eggs have been lain that week. I am now currently waiting on 4 bluebird eggs to hatch. Here is a picture of them below:



When I went out to the boxes this week, I bought a mirror so I could see in those hard to reach boxes. The one I bought (below), has a very nice size mirror and is doesn't cost much. ($10) You can find them at your local hardware store.
More news to report today. This morning when I got up, I found a chickadee stuck in my garage. I have know idea how it got there, my best guess being that it flew in when the door was open. Armed with two butterfly nests, I approached the flustered bird again and again. And again and again it dodged the net. If I got lucky enough to catch it, it would just slip between the two nets closed around it. After 10 or 15 minutes, I realized that I was working myself into some sort of rhythmic pursuit. From one perch in the garage, to the next, and then back to the first. I also realized that I was over exerting the poor creature, so I am letting it rest now. The garage door is open for it to leave if he chooses, although it seems he has no intention to. I will post updates on the chickadees status, so check back later.

Bluebird Updates

I had a sneaking suspicion that the only bluebird nest in my set of boxes had been abandoned. After a few weeks, I realized that the 5 eggs weren't going to hatch. With no sign of any adults in the area, I lost hope that it was still an active nest. However, in the next box over from it, one bluebird egg had just been lain. I am hoping that this nest will not have the same fate as its neighbor...we'll have to see. Every other nest is going pretty smoothly. We have three broods of tree swallows that are maturing rapidly-all of the nestling are now covered in downy fluff. I will post pictures of them soon.
I have been having a problem with viewing nest contents because of the height of the box. Also sometimes the height of the nest can prevent you from your monitoring duties. If you monitor boxes, you probably know exactly what I am talking about. A simple solution is to buy a small hand-held mirror at a hardware store. If positioned correctly, the mirror will allow you viewing access into the nest.

2 Confirmed Successful Hatches!

When I arrived at the at the nest box trail yesterday afternoon, I realized I was missing my screwdriver for opening the boxes. I tried twisting the nail manually and even tried car keys but, of course, nothing worked. Thankfully, the local nature preserve had one I could borrow. The nest box trail I use to do had very sharp and bent up wire that we used to close the boxes with. After a few weeks of unraveling and twisting, the wire was so bent up that it was barley usable. Although I prefer the screws to the wire, if I were to put up my own boxes later, I would not use either. Perhaps something a little more accessible...call me picky if you like, but maybe a simple latch from a hardware store would work better. If anyone has suggestions about box hardware, or wants to share what they use on their boxes, please comment below this post.
Two nest boxes are now a happy home to newly hatched Tree Swallow nestlings. Both broods are still featherless and nestled together tightly for warmth. I will post picture of them soon, as I did not want to startle them with a camera flash this week!
Below I have posted some pictures of how entering NestWatch data looks. (Although my NestWatch readers already know)


This picture shows the Rose Acres Loop:
This screen shot shows data entered from the first two weeks of data collection:

The Second Breeding Season Begins...

Winter has passed and spring is here. All traces of snow and cold are gone and there are no more bare tree branches. Yesterday was my first time back to monitoring nest boxes all year. As you know from previous posts, this is a new site for me.
The site is called Rose Acres. It is part of a larger preserve, but does not see as much traffic as the main areas. This makes it an ideal place for birds to go through breeding seasons undisturbed. When I arrived on site, I could not believe how many Tree Swallows I saw. I started opening the boxes, most of the nests were from Swallows but one was from a Bluebird. 5 light blue Bluebird eggs are in box number three. I will keep an eye on them and maybe post photos of the nestlings if I can. Above are some picture I took of Rose Acres.