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Bluebirds

 

 

 

 

 

 

BNL has established a bluebird project to enhance the bluebird population on site. A volunteer carries out this project placing and taking care of the boxes each year. BNL currently has 46 boxes located around grassy fields onsite. Each year 19 of the boxes are successfully used by bluebirds with many of the other boxes being used by tree swallows, black-capped chickadees, and house wrens. The boxes are visited several times during the breeding season that extends from around the middle of April through early September. Some pairs may nest more than once during this period.

  
Bluebird boxes are also used by other birds like this Tree Swallow.

Nest Box Use by Other Species

Bluebird boxes are used by several other species of birds including tree swallows (see photo), house wren, black-capped chickadee, and house sparrows. The size of the entry hole limits the use to birds that are of similar size compared to bluebirds.

Nest Box Nesting Success

As mentioned above BNL has 46 boxes established around suitable habitat located on Lab property. Individual box use may be variable from year to year, but nesting success has been consistent over the past two years with 19 successful bluebird nests. The table below presents the nesting success for 2001 through 2004.

 

Bluebird Nest Box Success


Box # 2001 # of nests 2002 # of nests 2003 # of nests 2004 # of nests
1 Empty   Empty   House Wren 1 Few Grasses  
2 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1
3 Bluebird 2 Empty   House Wren   Few Grasses  
4 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 House Wren   House Wren 1
4         Bluebird 1    
5 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird  
6 House Wren   House Wren 1 House Wren   House Wren  
7 Empty 1 House Wren   House Wren   House Wren  
8 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 2 Empty   Bluebird 1
9 Few Grasses   House Wren   Empty   House Wren 1
10 House Wren   Bluebird 1 Empty   Bluebird 1
10             House Wren 1
11 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Empty   House Wren  
12 Moss   Chickadee 1 Mushroom   Empty  
12A             Mushrooms  
13 Empty   Empty   Empty   Empty  
14 House Wren 1 Chickadee 1 Empty   House Wren  
14 Bluebird 1            
15 House Wren 1 House Wren 1 House Wren   Few Grasses  
16 House Wren 1 House Wren   Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1
16 Bluebird 1         House Wren 1
17 Empty   Bluebird 1 House Wren   House Wren  
18 Empty   Wasps   Empty   Bluebird 1
19 Empty   Tree Swallow 1 Bluebird 1 Empty  
20 Empty   Bluebird 1 House Wren   Twigs  
21 House Wren 1 Tree Swallow 1 House Wren   Bluebird 2
21         Bluebird 1    
22 House Wren   House Wren   House Wren 2 New Box  
22         Bluebird 1    
23 Bluebird 2 Bluebird 1 Missing Box   Bluebird 1
24 House Wren 1 Bluebird 2 Tree Swallow 1 Tree Swallow 1
24 Bluebird 1     Bluebird 1 Tree Swallow 1
25 House Wren 1 Tree Swallow 1 Tree Swallow 1 Tree Swallow 1
25 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 2    
26 House Wren   Empty   Bluebird 1 Tree Swallow 1
27 Few Grasses   House Wren 1 Tufted Titmouse 1 House Wren 1
28 Empty   Wasps   Wasps   Yellow Jackets  
29 Empty   House Wren 1 Bluebird 1 Tree Swallow 1
30 Bluebird 1 Tree Swallow 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 2
31 Bluebird 1 Empty   Empty   House Wren 1
32 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 2 Bluebird 2 Bluebird 2
32     Tree Swallow 1 Empty      
33 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Tree Swallow 1 House Wren  
33         Bluebird 1    
33A     Bluebird 1        
34 Tree Swallow 1 House Wren 1 House Wren   Empty  
34         Tree Swallow 1    
35 Bluebird 2 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird 2
36 House Wren   Bluebird 1 House Wren 1 Bluebird 2
36     Tree Swallow 1        
37     Wasps   Empty   Bluebird 1
38     Empty   Bluebird 1 Empty  
39     Empty   House Wren   Bluebird 2
40     House Wren   House Wren   Bluebird 2
40         Bluebird 1    
41     House Wren   Empty   Bluebird  
42     Empty   Bluebird 1 Few Grasses  
43     Few Grasses   Tree Swallow 1 Chickadee  
44     Empty   Tufted Titmouse 1 Bluebird 1
45     House Wren 1 Bluebird 1 Bluebird  
46             Tree Swallow 1

For added information about the eastern bluebird and bluebird boxes visit the North American Bluebird Society on the web at: http://www.nabluebirdsociety.org/

Another good site for bluebird information is http://www.sialis.org 

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Last Modified: February 1, 2008
Please forward all questions about this site to: Mary Daum
 


DOE, Office of ScienceOne of ten national laboratories overseen and primarily funded by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Brookhaven National Laboratory conducts research in the physical, biomedical, and environmental sciences, as well as in energy technologies and national security. Brookhaven Lab also builds and operates major scientific facilities available to university, industry and government researchers. Brookhaven is operated and managed for DOE’s Office of Science by Brookhaven Science Associates, a limited-liability company founded by Stony Brook University, the largest academic user of Laboratory facilities, and Battelle, a nonprofit, applied science and technology organization.

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