Putting up a bluebird nest box is a commitment, placement is key

by Marcy Grande

Summit County contact, Ohio Bluebird Society

Before you know it, spring will be here. By March 1, Eastern Bluebirds will begin appearing in areas with which they are familiar, seeking nesting sites, even though it will be a few more weeks before they actually build nests.

Where a nest box (or bird house) is placed is key to attracting bluebirds. Those who put up a nest box should understand the commitment to keeping these boxes from attracting predators. By not monitoring the boxes, you could be hurting bluebirds instead of helping them.

Many backyards are not suitable for bluebirds, such as areas where houses are close together and/or have small backyards or are in high-traffic neighborhoods. For yards that are suitable and have wide open green space, avoid mounting bluebird nest boxes on tree trunks, because bluebirds will not nest in these boxes – but their predators, the house sparrow and possibly the house wren – will. Bluebirds avoid nesting in shady areas. Sites such as the middle of a vegetable garden (as long as chemical pesticides are not used) or against a fence post away from trees are better sites.

Bluebirds prefer open grassy areas, fields and no shade. It’s best to have a place where high grass and weeds do not grow beneath the nest box. Boxes should be posted five to six feet off the ground, although boxes placed a little higher usually suffice.

In recent years, great strides have been made to return bluebird populations to their former glory, but non-native populations such as house sparrows or starlings often keep them away and attack and brutalize adults, nestlings and eggs. Native to Great Britain, house sparrows are commonly found around shopping malls and plazas, in urban areas and in small postage-stamped size yards, especially where people are avid bird feeders. Unfortunately, house sparrows are so plentiful that they often venture out to less populated areas where they take away habitat from Eastern Bluebirds. A special note to business owners with large protruding letters for signage – these are magnets for house sparrow nests and ensuing messes.

If you were given a nest box for Christmas, do not mount it in shade, a high-traffic area or on a tree trunk. If your nest box attracts house sparrows, remove their nest, eggs and all, even if they repeatedly return to the box and rebuild their nests.

Should your nest box attract bluebirds, I promise you will be amazed by their beauty, how they defend their nestlings, protect and feed their young and occasionally visit nest boxes in late fall and sometimes throughout the winter. Following these tips should result in witnessing new generations. There is so much to learn about blue-birding. For those would like to become serious blue birding hobbyists/monitors, there is a solid, go-to website, sialis.org to explore. Also recommended is the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website, birds.cornell.edu.

The Ohio Bluebird Society seeks to improve methods of recording Eastern Bluebird populations throughout Ohio’s 88 counties. If you would like to participate in reporting the number of fledglings from your Summit County nest box or trail of nest boxes this coming season, the OBS would like to hear from you. The first wave of bluebirds should fledge around Memorial Day. Email your findings to info@ohiobluebirdsociety.org. ∞