Bluebird Box 2022 Season Wrap-Up

by Kurt Miske, WCAS Board Member

Bluebirds and tree swallows have migrated away from Lewis Road Riding Ring Bluebird Trail and the 2022 nesting season is over. As you may know, a typical nesting season runs from mid-spring well into August. 3 of our 5 nest boxes were used by native birds to procreate, as follows:

Eastern Bluebird by Michelle Brosius

Bluebirds and tree swallows have migrated away from Lewis Road Riding Ring Bluebird Trail and the 2022 nesting season is over. As you may know, a typical nesting season runs from mid-spring well into August. 3 of our 5 nest boxes were used by native birds to procreate, as follows:

• ​Box 1 - Although well-positioned, the box was unproductive. The box may have been used as a ‘decoy’ site by house sparrows. There are several explanations for birds making decoy nests; one likely one for Box 1 is they do it to reduce competition. Here is a link to learn more on decoy nest sites -https://www.sialis.org/dummy.htm
• Box 2 - In May and into June this box was used by a pair of tree swallows to raise  5 young. We believe all fledged!
• Box 3 - A pair of bluebirds was responsible for 3 eggs which were laid in June. All 3 hatched and, in July, fledged.
• Box 4 - A pair of tree swallows found this box suitable to raise 5 young. Eggs were laid in late May. The new tree swallows fledged in late June.
• Box 5 - This box was dominated by various pairs of house sparrows throughout the nesting season. This was a bigger problem this year than last, and may cause us to move the box if it continues. We allowed no young house sparrows to be produced!

These results have been recorded with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at the NestWatch site.
All 5 boxes have been cleaned out and will winter in place. We will check them in March to be certain they are ready for the 2023 nesting season.
​Thank you to our trail monitors: George Coleman, Lisa Gerbec, Jess Kowalski, Carol Miske
Thank you to our financial contributors. 
Hope to see you in 2023!