[bcbirdclub] Preparing for Spring

From: "Roger Mayhorn" <rmayhorn@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: "BCBC Listserve" <bcbirdclub@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 1 Mar 2009 14:38:15 -0500
Hi All,
As you can see from this photo (below) I am in the process of repairing, 
painting and building new nest boxes for our Bluebird trails that are spread 
out over Buchanan County and in the Breaks Park in Dickenson County. The 
Bluebirds start building nests near the end of March or in the early part of 
April.

Last year we had 310 Eastern Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, Carolina Chickadees and 
Tufted Titmice that fledged from the 70 plus boxes that are monitored weekly 
from April through August.

David Raines monitors 26 nest boxes on two trails, one in the Breaks Park and 
the other in the Breaks community.
Joel and Josh Meade monitor 20 boxes on the trail on Keen Mountain.
 Lynda, and I monitor 28 boxes on the trail here on Compton Mountain.
Without the work of these volunteers we could not gather the important data 
that we get each year. As count coordinator I then compile that data and send 
it on to the Virginia Bluebird Society, who then compiles all of the data 
gathered in Virginia and sends it to the National Bluebird Society. This allows 
the status of the Eastern Bluebird, a bird that was endangered during the 
1940's and 1950's, due to the lack of nesting cavities, to be monitored.

For those who want to build their own Bluebird nest boxes, plans can be found 
at http://www.virginiabluebirds.org/  Once there, look on the menu on the left 
and click on Nest Box and Guards.
The decorative bird houses that are sold in many stores and shops are not built 
for nesting birds. The houses are not built to the needed dimensions, the boxes 
sometimes have metal roofs, which will cook baby birds in the hot sun, and the 
boxes have no drainage or ventilation holes, which are necessary if the young 
birds are to stay cool and dry enough during hot weather. Without drainage 
holes wind driven rain can be blown into the box and the young will either 
drown or die from being wet and cold. 

In the past I have used some of these decorative houses, if they do not have 
metal roofs. I change the size of the entrance hole, drill holes for 
ventilation on both sides of the house near the roof and drill drainage holes 
in the floor. Unfortunately, most of these decorative houses do not open for 
cleaning out old nests or removing young birds that sometimes die before 
leaving the nest. All of the nest boxes in this photo open on one side for easy 
cleaning.

Roger Mayhorn
Compton Mt
[bcbirdclub] Preparing for Spring

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