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May
13 - FLEDGING DAY!!! All five nestlings became fledglings today as they ventured out into
the world beyond their box. Scroll down to see highlights of the day. |
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Alone
in the box for about 45 minutes, the last nestling sits perched on the entrance hole. This
is our last glimpse of the Antietam bluebirds before they leave the nest box once and for
all. |
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One
lone sweet bluebird nestling left in the box. |
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Another
three hours passes before nestling number three and four leave their safe and comfortable
nest box, seemingly within minutes of one another. |
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It
would be almost three hours before the second nestling decides to take its first flight,
leaving three birds in the box. |
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Four
young remain, one curiously, with a fecal sac in its mouth. |
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The
first brave nestling peers out the entrance hole and leaves the box around 10:30 am. |
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May
12 - Quarters are really starting to be a bit cramped as the five nestlings begin to
outgrow the nest box. Feeding is greatly decreased by parents and is the main factor in
getting young to fledge. |
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May
11 - Capable of short flights, the young birds begin to spread their wings and even
attempt flight from within the box. |
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May
10 - A young bluebird looks at the camera with the classic "mad bluebird" pose. |
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May
10 - One of the parents delivers a mouthful of grubs to the relentless young nestlings.
Feeding will begin to diminish in the next few days to encourage nestlings' departure from
the nest. |
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May
9 - Our first look at one of the braver nestlings peeking out of the entrance hole. At two
weeks, we can reliably sex the nestlings by the amount of bright blue coloration on the
primaries and tail feathers. |
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May
9 - Mouth to mouth feeding. One of the parents drops food directly into the beak of the
nestling closest to the entrance hole. |
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May
8 - The five nestlings, now13 days old, begin to direct their begging posture
towards the entrance hole. Nest box monitors should not monitor boxes after this day to
avoid premature fledging. |
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May 7 - One
of the bluebird parents is about to remove a fecal sac (visible in the parent’s bill)
from the nest box. Shortly after being fed nestlings will defecate these small white
balloon-like sacs. Adults remove sacs from
the nest cavity and then drop them between 20 and 100 meters away from the nest. |
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May 6 - One
of the parents is delivering food for the nestlings.
During the breeding season bluebirds eat mostly insects which are rich
in proteins essential for proper growth. Encouraging nesting by cavity-nesters will help to reduce the numbers of
insects in yards, naturally, without using pesticides. |
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May 6 -Here
is a nice view of the back of one of the chicks. Notice
the feathers are emerging from the sheaths. The feathers grow quite rapidly and nestlings
are almost entirely feathered by day 12. |
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May 6 - Five hungry mouths! |
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May 4 - At eight days old, the secondary
wing coverts begin to emerge from the sheaths, and the nestlings can now regulate their
own body temperature. |
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May 4 - The female is seen exiting the box
with a fecal sac in her beak. Removing fecal sacs helps to keep the nest neat and sanitary. |
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May 3 - Young nestlings will consume a
variety of foods including moth larvae, spiders, grasshoppers, ants, and various berries. |
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May 2 - Between 5 and 6 days, the
nestlings' eyes will open. This is our first glimpse of one of the nestlings with its eyes
open (lower right). |
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May 1 - By the time the nestlings are six
days old, the female spends little time in the nest brooding. Instead, she will deliver
food through the entrance hole to the gaping mouths. |
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April 30 - With open beaks and necks
stretched upward, the young nestlings beg for food from one of their parents. By showing
this behavior the nestlings are almost guaranteed a meal. |
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April 29 - The male is seen here feeding
the four day old nestlings. Typically, the parents will make 8-10 feeding
visits per hour. It is no wonder that both parents share this responsibility equally! |
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April 28 - We get a rare glimpse of both
parents in the box caring for the nestlings. One
of the parents has brought in what looks to be a moth larvae or caterpillar to feed to
their young. |
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April 27 - Both parents will care for the
nestlings during the 15 to18 day nestling period. This image shows three of the young in
characteristic begging posture as the male enters the box with food. |
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April 26 - A wonderful shot of the sleeping
nestlings. Young are born with dark gray down on their head, wings, and lower back.
Contour feathers will also begin to develop today. |
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April 25 - HATCHING DAY! The top photo is our first glimpse of the open-mouthed begging by one of the
nestlings. There will be many more shots like this one in the weeks to come!
The second image from the top captures the fourth nestling emerging
from its shell! In between the time the eggs are hatching, the female is busy eating the
eggshells and then incubating the young and remaining eggs.
The middle photo shows a fully hatched second nestling and three
eggs remaining.
A few hours later, the male is seen inside the box, possibly helping
to remove the shell from the second egg.
The bottom image shows the first egg hatching at about 8:45 am.
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April 23 - Here you can see three of the
five eggs as the female peers out the nest box (top).
Females can spend up to 60% of their time incubating the eggs. In most cases female will remain on the nest for
the entire night and then leave sometime within the first hour after daybreak. The bottom photo reveals the beautiful colors typical of male Eastern
Bluebirds.
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April
22 - The male joins the incubating female in the nest box. Females are the primary care
givers in bluebird pairs. It is possible that
the visiting male is there to attempt to copulate with the incubating female. |
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April 21 - The female
is once again seen sitting on her five eggs. Once the last egg has been laid the female
will incubate the eggs for 12-14 days. Incubation can sometimes be lengthened at times of prolonged cold weather. |
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April 20 - A beautiful shot of a female
Eastern Bluebird incubating her five eggs.The young are expected to hatch on April 22. |
