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Are there any Bluebird experts out there?

Each year we have a pair of nesting Bluebirds in our yard and they produce the usual clutch of 3 or 4 eggs which duly hatch.

This year, however, there seems to be a problem.

Everything was going normally until 2 days ago when both birds abandoned the nest. They still come to their feeder when called but, having eaten, instead of going into their box they fly off.

There is one small (undamaged) egg in the nest and no sign of the usual predators - Wrens, chipmunks etc. ( no broken eggs around the site).

Each time the Bluebirds come to eat they look into their nesting box but don't enter.

Should we clean it out and let them start again? They obvoiusly aren't going to use it unless we make some changes. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I'd leave the nest alone, if they are still looking into the nest they know the eggs there, and are just checking up on it.

Thanks - Abbey. But if the mother is not incubating the egg the chick will die.

What species of Bluebird do you have in England?

In Pennsylvania we have the Eastern Bluebird variety.

How many eggs do English Bluebirds lay? Our species lay 3 or 4 twice. As soon as the first brood hatches they start a second brood and make a second nest on top of the first. The first brood then help the adults feed the second brood.

Is it the same with English Bluebirds?

In America we also have the Western Bluebird which are common on the other side of the Rockies.

The Western Bluebird has quite different characteristics to the Eastern type and is less 'family' oriented.

It would be interesting to know which species you have in England.

Sorry, i cant answer your question all i know is that they're small & blue & they lay 4 or 5 eggs at a time.

Dont know about where you are, but here they are protected, so if an abandoned nest is found its (supposedley) looked after by the RSPB or RSPCA.

Thanks Abbey - I'm not sure that we're talking about the same thing.

I'm in Pennsylvania and Bluebirds are quite common here.

I've checked with NABS and they don't list an affiliate for UK so it looks as if these birds don't exist there. Our Bluebirds can't live further north than about 41 degrees latitude and as England is much further north than that the ones you refer to are probably not the same species.

Nevertheless as a Bluebird lover I am interested in what species yours are.

I can't find any reference to them in the usual information books so would be grateful for any further info you have.

Philadelphia Eagle wrote: Thanks Abbey - I'm not sure that we're talking about the same thing.



I'm in Pennsylvania and Bluebirds are quite common here.



I've checked with NABS and they don't list an affiliate for UK so it looks as if these birds don't exist there. Our Bluebirds can't live further north than about 41 degrees latitude and as England is much further north than that the ones you refer to are probably not the same species.



Nevertheless as a Bluebird lover I am interested in what species yours are.



I can't find any reference to them in the usual information books so would be grateful for any further info you have. Sorry P.E Just phoned my brother & he put me right, i was thinking of a Blue tit.

Feel a bit of a blue tit now.

Seriously, can anybody just clarify something. Are BLUEBIRDS the same as BLUE JAYS? Thank you.

No - Bluebirds are not the same as Blue Jays. We have both here. They're very different.

I've had an e-mail from NABS. Bluebirds don't exist in England - it's too cold for them there as we thought.

The Society thought that perhaps they had come across a new species!

I've explained that there was a small confusion with the common Blue Tit!

Here is a photograph of an Eastern Bluebird.

It is a little larger than a thrush. They are territorial birds and won't tolerate another Bluebird family nesting within 100 yards but will live happily alongside other species.

Their natural predators are chipmunks, squirrels etc. and both Wrens and Tree Swallows compete with them for nesting boxes.

The Blue Jay is an entirely different type of bird. It is colored a light blue all over and has a small 'tuft' on the top of its head.

Blue Jays nest in trees rather than nesting boxes - their favorite tree is a black walnut. Unlike the quiet Bluebird, Blue Jays are very noisy and if you get several families nesting close by they can create quite a din!

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