[va-richmond-general] Re: Message From RAS Website Link
- From: "Wendy Ealding" <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> (Redacted sender "wealding@xxxxxxx" for DMARC)
- To: joelively@xxxxxxx, va-richmond-general@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 1 Mar 2015 14:59:13 -0500
I live in a densely developed neighborhood in Midlothian, it is my first winter
at this location. Because this is a new development, there is very little in
the way of trees or shrub cover. I have been having Bluebirds come to my
feeder regularly since mid-December. The feeder is a pole-mounted hopper type,
fairly close to the house, and I feed sunflower hearts and have a peanut butter
suet cake in a basket mounted on the pole. The Bluebirds are taking the
sunflower hearts, and haven't shown interest in the peanut butter suet.
Because this is my first winter at this location, I don't know if this is
typical.
Wendy Ealding
Midlothian
-----Original Message-----
From: Joe Lively <joelively@xxxxxxx>
To: va-richmond-general <va-richmond-general@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sun, Mar 1, 2015 2:35 pm
Subject: [va-richmond-general] Message From RAS Website Link
Re: Report of dead bluebirds by Alyssa Salomon.
I live in a very rural
area near Farmville. After reading your report, I checked my boxes today and
found two male bluebirds dead (each in seperate boxes). Another was found on
the back deck. There were no external marks to indicate dying due to predator
action. Although bluebirds will tend to crowd into a nesting box on cold nights,
no active bluebirds have been observed subsequent to the two snows.
First
thought: I would think that a die-off might well be related to the unusually
cold conditions. During our recent snows, two bluebirds were observed feeding at
suet blocks, along with other species that are not commonly seen around house.
In past years, I have taken photographs of bluebirds showing them consuming
berries from wild sumac bushes. They have also been observed visiting a hanging
feeder filled with black-oil sunflower seeds that had been liberally sprinkled
with freeze dried meal worms. So from field observations, supported by
photographic documentation, I do know bluebirds eat seeds. Each observation (and
photographs taken) occurred during snow, ice and unusually cold conditions.
Record cold conditions prevailed this past month.
The questions are:
1.
Was a source of wild seeds or supplemental feed available?
2. Was this apparent
die-off due to the frigid temperatures
3. Did pathology have a role?
If more
reports come in from a wide radius, concerned bluebird hosts might consider
delaying the cleaning out of nesting debris from the previous season. This would
provide addition insulation against the cold.
Should numerous reports continue
to come in, it might be an issue for Audubon to explore.
Joe
Lively
Jetersville, Va.
(804) 561-3082 You are subscribed to
VA-Richmond-General. To unsubscribe, send email
to
va-richmond-general-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject
field. To adjust other settings (vacation, digest, etc.) please visit,
//www.freelists.org/list/va-richmond-general.
Other related posts:
