Rehabilitation of nest boxes in Boyce-Mayview Park continues. Some of the boxes will likely be removed as the surrounding habitat is not conducive to Eastern Bluebird nesting. It may be that these boxes were placed years ago and the vegetation has grown up around them. We are working to put baffles around the poles upon which the boxes are mounted. Baffles keep predators such as snakes, raccoons and other mammals out of the boxes. Baffles also help to eliminate the problem of mice taking over the nesting sites. Two of the first three boxes to which we attached baffles had nesting mice in them. We evicted the mice and after installing the baffles, no mice have been found in the boxes.
An Eastern Bluebird pair began nesting in one of the boxes in the Gardens area, and four eggs hatched. Sadly, after some particularly unseasonable cold and wet weather, the hatchlings were found dead in their nest. There were blowfly larvae found in the nest. Some research suggests that blowfly larvae do not significantly increase hatchling mortality. However, the same research suggests that the combination of blowfly larvae and cold, rainy weather may play a factor.
Hopefully, there will be other successful nestings in the park this year. Stay tuned.
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