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How do I discourage birds that compete with and harass bluebirds?
We have a bluebird box that has already been occupied by 2 couples(possibly same) this year. However, from our monitoring we think the first couple's eggs were preyed upon by a European Starling. [5 bluebird eggs were present; then a day or 2 afterwards I saw the ES atop the box trying to peek in; I shooed the ES away, but later, same day checked the box and it was empty!] Sparrows frequently seem to want to harass the parent bluebirds. Any ideas on how to keep these less desirable bird species at bay?
1 Answer
- Kitty MomLv 41 decade agoFavorite Answer
This is VERY hard to do. Bluebirds tend to nest early, and you may get one nesting. Then the other birds start to compete with the bluebirds. Unfortunately the bluebirds are not aggressive birds and do not fight for their nesting site. About the only thing you can do is continually monitor the box, and keep throwing the other nests out, which may include throwing the eggs out as well. My husband builds, and monitors many houses for bluebirds, and there have many disappointing moments, where the babies have been pecked to death, or the wrens have built over the bluebird nest with eggs in it, and laid their own eggs in the new nest. It is very frustrating to have this happen. You could try to put another house about 30-40 feet away from the other house, and just continue to throw out the other birds. This is one of the problems with the bluebirds becoming extinct. Don't give up on them, whatever you do!!