Bluebirds

Purchase Area Master Gardener Association

(PAMGA)

Bluebirds

April 12, 2005, Jim Petcoff, a Master Gardener and member of the National Bluebird Society, spoke to us about bluebirds.

Bluebirds are distinct from blue jays and are endangered. Hence, there is a move afoot to distribute bluebird boxes and teach people the importance of bluebirds to our ecosystem. Bluebirds have several predators including snakes, cats and squirrels. House sparrows are some of their most pernicious competitors.

It takes about 30 days for a bluebird egg to mature into an adult. Normally a female will lay one egg a day for four to five days. Thus, there are usually 4-5 eggs in a brood. Young birds will have an outer layer of gray feathers. Bluebirds like mosquitoes and it is helpful to provide suet cakes and mealy worms for them during winter. No food supplement is needed during other months of the year. It is important to keep the area mowed around a bluebird box as that is their preference. Good companion birds are chickadees and nuthatches. As an aside, chickadees build their nests from moss.

Bluebird boxes are often made of pine or cedar. It is important not to use a preservative or paint on the box as the birds will peck at it and ingest the paint. Cedar is especially good because the wood does not require any preservative. Contact the National Bluebird Society for information on acquiring free boxes. The center hole of the box is 1.5" inches in diameter.

To be considered a "bluebird trail," one must maintain at least five (5) boxes. There should be at least 100 yards between boxes and they should be placed at least 75 feet away from a residence. Position the box away from the prevailing wind; ideally, the box should face northeast.

Land Between the Lakes maintains about 158 bluebird boxes as part of the Transcontinental Trail.

When approaching a bluebird box, tap on the side of the box to alert the mother bird to your presence. Otherwise, if you open the box flap she will likely be startled and fly into your face.

A camera is positioned at Heath Elementary School in McCracken County to observe bluebirds in our area.

	Student Journal Entries
4/12/2005	The Kentucky Bluebird Society helps foster bluebirds because of shrinking habitat. A bluebird trail is a trail of homes about 300 feet apart so the bluebirds can raise their young. There are 3 types of bluebirds in the United States: Eastern, Western, and Mountain bluebirds. Bluebirds enjoy gardens they eat insects. If a house sparrow finds a bluebird it will kill it. You cannot paint or preserve the bluebird boxes because the bluebirds could be poisoned by eating the box. It takes about 30 days to get a mature bluebird. Bluebird eggs can be blue or even white. In 2002, the Land Between The Lakes, had 158 bluebird boxes that held 1341 eggs, and 1044 fledgings. The males scout for a home, finds one and then he attracts the female and she checks the home out. If she rejects it then the male searches again to find another home. To make a bluebird box, the hole must be 1.5 inches wide for the bluebird to use it for nesting. The box must be 5-6 feet off the ground and facing away from the prevailing winds. A bluebird will lay 4-5 eggs. Nesting is from March to April but may be as late as July.
4/12/05	Today we talked about bluebirds. Bluebirds are an endangered species and now are trying to make a come back. We are trying to save them by putting up bird houses made out of pine or cedar and allowing the birds to nest. The birds will lay up to 5 eggs and the fledgings will be full grown after about 30 days. The eggs are blue but there might be white eggs too. The bluebirds have many predators. There must be guards at the base of the houses to protect their homes. The birdhouses must be spread 300 feet apart to protect the birds. Their enemies include the house sparrow, raccoons, cats, snakes, and squirrel.

Purchase Area Master Gardener Association, 2705 Olivet Church Road, Paducah, Ky 42001 270/554-9520 FAX 270/554-8283 www.pamga.org