Now, if you’re an American reading this blog, when was the last time (or first time?) you read our Declaration of Independence? It’s an amazing work that will only take you five minutes or so to do, and it will remind you of the blessings our country enjoys and what so many gave their lives to secure. We’re making it a new, annual tradition in our home starting this year. I invite you to join us. Here’s a link to the text. Fireworks and picnics are great, but this wonderful holiday was established to remind us of something important…to remember something significant…our God-given freedom. We have taken it for granted too much lately, I’m afraid.

And on that note (yes, this does all relate to birds somehow), look at the mess of sticks our chattering house wrens have now loaded up inside the bluebird box! I’m not sure where the room for eggs, nestlings, and a parent would be. Quite a “nest” indeed! But this territory had been previously claimed…

Yes, the bluebirds we love and hold so dear have indeed returned and are not giving up this space without a fight. It’s something they hold sacred, this little home of theirs, and they believe it’s worth fighting for. They’ve been sitting on it, chasing house wrens away, and peeking inside at all the chaos. It’s almost like someone has stolen their home, their land.

Well, here at Dave’s Bird Watching blog (and Dave’s house for that matter), we believe in a cause such as this. Who among us would stand by and watch as another’s home is stolen? Who will stand in the gap with those who would have their home invaded by tyrants? Who will rise up against such brash thievery in broad daylight no less?! Who would fight for freedom…life, liberty, and the pursuit of bird happiness?!! A bird’s home is sacred. And bluebirds, you have a friend in us. We (seeing that there were no eggs inside…and I checked first) come to your aid in this hour and fight for you!

You are free of these squatters, and their crazy furniture is removed, nay banished from these premises! Be free, be fruitful, and multiply in this humble abode! We bid you a warm, “Welcome Home!” Oh yeah, there was a cool moth on our front door, too.  :-)  Dave

P.S. No house wrens were killed or harmed in the making of this blog.

Okay, as I was saying, BIG NEWS! We’ve got intruders in our bluebird house! Daddy went outside yesterday, and we had a whole bunch of sticks and twigs in the nestbox. Now, even a new bird watcher like me knew that meant trouble. Our last bluebird nest never looked like that, so I asked to do my playtime out on the deck with big brother and keep an eye out. Here’s a picture…

I sure do love my brother! He’s really gentle with me, and boy is he fun! He makes me laugh and cackle like no one else can. When I get big, I’m going to ride a bike and roller blade just like he does! So where was I? Oh yeah, pretty soon we started hearing this loud chattering noise…kind of like bird singing but different. I knew something was going on, so I grabbed the camera and started recording. Sure enough a little bird with a twig flew right over to the nestbox. Check it out…

So it’s not my best work…a little unsteady for my tastes, but what did you expect? I can’t even crawl yet! Anyway, Daddy showed me the pictures in our bird book and told me it was a house wren. That’s how they build their nests…with sticks. Pretty uncomfortable if you ask me. I like something with a little more padding and bounce to it. This is me in my “hopper” (below). I love to jump in it and stand on my tiptoes. I’m a good jumper!

I don’t think we had told you guys yet that our baby bluebirds finally did fly out of the box later in the day back on June 19. Remember that video Daddy showed you of the bluebird sticking his head out? Well, right after that, the mama bluebird flew to the deck and started screaming like crazy! Daddy thought that maybe our neighbor’s cat had come into the yard and that was why the mama was so upset. Well, he put the camera down and went to see what she was looking at…it was a snake! A big black snake was heading toward the nest! Those little birds heard mama’s alarm, popped right out, and flew up to a tree. Daddy completely missed getting a video of the birds flying out. Then the snake went under the deck and he missed that, too. He was so sad! 

Well, my bottle is all ready, so I need to go. What’d ya think? Not bad for a little guy, huh? And you thought a seven month old couldn’t blog! Stay tuned to see what happens with our bluebirds and house wrens battling for the same space. It could get pretty interesting!

Hmmm...a quick "bath" sure would feel good right now. I think I'll do it.

No hawks in the sky. That's good.

Any cats down below? Nope...all clear.

Whew! It stinks under here!

I gotta remember that deodorant stuff.

Wow, how do you get way back here?!

Oops...too much fluff. Conditioner anyone?

Mama said to always get under your chin.

Almost done. Just a little more and...

HEY!!! This is a private bath!!!

Nestbox with baffle

Recently, a lot of you have found my blog through searching the web for info on bluebirds. Well, this post is specifically for you! I’ve put together a page of the most common questions about bluebirds and links to a good answer (mostly on the Sialis.org site run by Bet Zimmerman…she has a WEALTH of great bluebird info). Hope this helps, and thanks to everyone for checking out my blog! Here’s a link to my current blog post.

Keep in mind, that the answers provided here are true for Eastern Bluebirds and may not apply equally to Mountain Bluebirds or Western Bluebirds.

I’m new to bluebirds. What are the basics?
How do you attract bluebirds to your yard?
What can you feed bluebirds?
Bluebirds LOVE to eat mealworms! More info about mealworms…
Do bluebirds eat suet?
How do you build a bluebird box or nestbox?
Where should I site a bluebird nestbox?
Is it too late to put up a bluebird box?
Do I need a baffle or predator guard for a bluebird box?
How do you monitor a bluebird box? Do I really need to monitor?
How many eggs will a bluebird lay?
Do bluebirds ever lay white eggs?
How long does it take for bluebird eggs to hatch?
Do I remove the eggs that didn’t hatch?
When do baby bluebirds leave the nest (fledge) and fly away?
What’s that small, white thing the parent bluebirds are removing from the nest?
Should I clean out the old nest?
Our bluebird nest is missing. What happened?
Our bluebird eggs are missing. What happened?
Our bluebird eggs have been cracked open/pecked/destroyed. What happened?
Our bluebird nestlings are missing and the nest is undisturbed. What happened?
Our bluebird nestlings are dead in the nest. What happened?
Our bluebird nestlings are dead on the ground below the nestbox and also pecked. What happened?
Our parent bluebirds are missing. What do we do?
I found a bluebird egg on the ground. What do I do? Can I raise it myself?
There are a bunch of sticks in our bluebird box. What’s happening?
How do I get rid of ants in a bluebird box?
There is an unusual egg in our bluebird box. What is it?
I’m having trouble with house sparrows. What do I do?
Will a bluebird eat out of your hand?

Well, certainly this list isn’t exhaustive, and I’ve surely left out questions you want answered. So, ask them below, and I’ll answer them myself or give you a link! Thanks again for visiting! Dave

To fly or not to fly…this little guy sure is thinking about it! Dave

And of course, here’s the customary close-up for you to enjoy. Aren’t you glad I didn’t give you an extreme look into the mouth of the one up front? I would never do that, by the way…

Haven’t shown you the boys in a while either, so here’s one from earlier in the week of one happy big brother and one very tired little brother. Give that kiddo a nap!

And look who lost a front tooth two days later! Hockey injury? Tooth decay? Radiation? Nope, just growing up. He’ll be in college before we know it! C-y’all next week. Dave

Computer: I can zoom in on you, but you’ll be out of focus…here you go.

Squirrel: No, no, no!!! I look terrible like that! Zoom me back out!

Computer: Not so fast, rodent. This might be fun. I always wanted to do this. Let me try something here…

Squirrel: AAAAGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

Computer: Ha ha!!! Who’s hosting now, squirrel?!!!

Squirrel: You can’t do this! Wait ’til I tell Dave!

Carolina Wren: Um, excuse me, Mr. Computer, sir. If I may, the rodent is correct. There has been an undue amount of attention on the bluebirds lately. Quite unfair to the rest of us birds, in my opinion.

Mr. Computer: I like this “Mister Computer” thing we have going on. But what about the killdeer blog Dave did? That was about other birds. And there was even a robin in it.

Carolina Wren: Those don’t count. We’re talking the backyard birds here. You know, the red seed plate crew. Let’s get another opinion. What do you think, goldfinches?

Male Goldfinch: Don’t bring us into this. We’re hiding back here in the trees.

Female Goldfinch: Yeah, we sure don’t want to get drawn on. Plus, we eat at the thistle sock, so we’re officially neutral.

Mister Computer Sir: Whatever happened to those killdeer and robin eggs anyway?

Catbird: They all hatched. The killdeer family has completely vanished. No sight of ‘em anywhere. Robin nestlings are up in the tree in the front yard still. Two of them, I think. Last I saw, one egg didn’t open.

Most Excellent Supreme Computer Potentate: This typing thing is fun! Hey, what does this do? ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ooo…I like that! You can make lots of these real easy! Look! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wheee!!!!

Squirrel: Oh brother. I give up. At least there’s still some food left. That’s all for today, folks.

Computer: Thanks for playing, squirrel. We do have a nice parting gift for you though…

Enjoy the dialogue? Link back to some of my other talking bird posts: bluebird photo session, family bluebird photo session, baby bluebirds talking, and Carolina wren mystery eggs. You can also link back to my home page for my most current blog. Thanks for visiting! Dave

Dave, these seeds and peanuts are okay, but where are the mealworms?

Um, I think Dad got them all.

He was just here a second ago...where'd he go?

Yep, it was me...feeding the new nestlings, you know.

Yeah, we've got four baby brothers and sisters in the nestbox!

Oh and by the way...mom? I think you forgot your make-up this morning.

Seriously?! Oh no...I'll be right back!

Whew, thanks! Is this better?

You just can't beat good eye shadow. Makes all the difference!

Are we using the same black hook for this conversation? I'm confused!

Now, at this point the killdeer was not in a hosting mood and peeped loudly at me to vamoose. If you heard the sounds it was making, you would totally expect to be at the beach…reminded me a lot of seagulls. Killdeer are shorebirds, of course, so that makes sense.

This is what she (I’m assuming) looked like when I first arrived. Look at that gorgeous fan of tail feathers…wow! Remember from the first killdeer post that it is nesting on an island in our church’s parking lot. So I appropriately ask you at this point, does a beautifully-patterned bird like this exist by chance? Did it just evolve over millions and millions of years from simpler life-forms that did the same thing? No, all creation truly points to an amazing creator God!

Continuing the nest theme, we also have a robin nesting in one of our trees at home. Don’t look now, but you’re being mooned… The nest is about ten feet off the ground, so what would a kind blog host do to serve his loyal readers in this situation? Ask his son to climb the tree with the camera, of course!

No, no, only joking, although he could totally do it. This is me risking life and limb, high in a spindly Bradford pear tree, braving hundreds of tiny ants and a loud, angry bird to bring you this unsatisfying photo. I say unsatisfying because of the sunlight splitting the nest. The eggs really are a gorgeous blue, turquoise even (that’s for you, Carolyn), but the picture doesn’t do them justice. These just look like pale bluebird eggs. Oh well. Maybe I’ll risk it all again tomorrow… Bye!

P.S. Got some good pictures of the baby bluebirds this weekend, so I’ll post them tomorrow or Wednesday. We also have a robin nest with some beautiful turquoise eggs!