TIPS FOR HANGING A BLUEBIRD HOUSE

A Bluebird house can provide hours of enjoyment in your backyard.

However, bluebirds can be picky when it comes to settling into a new home.  They can also become victims of predators if their nesting places are easily accessible.  If you wish to hang a new home for the Bluebirds in your yard, here are some helpful tips to successfully attract a Bluebird family.

 A bluebird house at the World Bird Sanctuary (photo: Erica O’Donnell)

Bluebirds enjoy open areas, so choose an area that is at least 200 feet away from heavy woods.  However, 1 or 2 trees located within 50 feet of the Bluebird house will be useful for your Bluebird family.  This will help fledglings go from tree to tree during their first flights.  Try to hang the house near locations where you know Bluebirds enjoy perching.  This includes fence and telephone wires and posts.

Attempt to hang the house on a smooth metal post.  This will keep predators, such as snakes and raccoons from climbing up to invade the Bluebird’s home.  A good rule of thumb is to hang the house 5 to 15 feet up from the ground.  Hang the house so that it is facing an area with short grass that is frequently mowed.  This will help the bluebirds find food around this area, such as crickets and spiders.

If you choose to provide food for your new family, you will want to consider a few options.  Bluebirds are capable of learning to eat from feeders, but prefer mealworms and berries to traditional bird seed.  Mealworms can be obtained through pet stores, bait shops, and feed stores.

Hanging a Bluebird house can be a fun and educating experience.  Watching a new family settle and grow in your own yard can provide more entertainment than any piece of digital equipment. Enjoy your new friends!

Submitted by Erica O’Donnell, World Bird Sanctuary Education Coordinator

Got Cavities?

There are many ways of attracting songbirds into one’s backyard.

An easy method is, of course, to put up bird feeders and watch the feeding frenzy that occurs.  Bird feeders are important because they help birds get the nutrients they need to survive, especially during migrations.  If you want to encourage birds to stay in your backyard, though, you might consider putting up birdhouses, or nest boxes.

Bluebird hatchlings inside a nestbox (photo: JoHanna Burton)

Birds that nest in boxes or other such hollows are called cavity nesters, meaning they nest in tree hollows or other such spaces that have already been created.  There are quite a few cavity nesting species in Missouri; our state bird, the Eastern Bluebird, is among them.

Now, you could put up any old birdhouse and see what decides to nest there, but some species are pickier than others. The Eastern Bluebird, for example, much prefers something akin to a box on a post than a box hanging from a tree. Carolina and House Wrens will nest in just about anything.

Another determining factor for a nesting pair of songbirds is location, location, location.  Eastern Bluebirds can be especially picky about this.  They prefer edge-like habitats – grassy areas with a few trees.  Golf courses seem to be great places to attract nesting bluebirds.

The size of the box will also determine what type of bird you attract.  Possibly the most important aspect of this is the size of the opening to the box.  It must be large enough to admit the bird, but small enough to deter larger competitors, nest parasites (Brown-headed Cowbirds), or would-be predators.

If you want to attract smaller birds, like wrens and chickadees, the opening should be approximately one and one quarter inches in diameter.  For slightly larger songbirds, such as bluebirds, the opening should measure about an inch and a half across.

Woodpeckers are also cavity nesters (photo: Gay Schroer)

Certain birds of prey are also cavity nesters, such as the Eastern Screech Owl and American Kestrel.  To encourage these birds to nest near your yard, you’ll need a larger nest box, with an opening of three inches in diameter.

If attracting a certain species of bird to nest in your yard is your goal, it is important to do your research first, remembering that the type and size of the box as well as its location can be important to nesting pairs.

Not handy enough to build your own nestbox?  To begin your career as a “birdy landlord” stop by the World Bird Sanctuary’s Wildlife Hospital where we have nestboxes available for purchase at a minimal cost. 

Submitted by JoHanna Burton, World Bird Sanctuary Naturalist