Start
with good, clean (no paint or stains or chemicals) real solid
wood (aged exterior plywood seems to be ok), preferably old stuff
that has had some use and is rough. It needs to be natural wood,
not plastic, metal, glass, or that high resin smooth stuff, but
at least 5/8 inch thick cedar, redwood, pine or fir with rough
surfaces. We have had problems with bluebirds and other birds not
being able to exit the nest box because the inside surfaces of
the nest box were so smooth that the bluebird could not get a
grip. Several shallow cuts with a saw or some elbow work with a rasp should be enough if you're using new wood. Also,
make sure the wood doesn't have spikes or nails sticking out, or
in. Bluebirds are wild and can have weird reactions to plastic,
paint or even Dacron or rayon. Please no perches on the front of
the bluebird house; bluebirds do not need a perch to enter or
exit the house. In the wild, bluebirds live in holes, or
cavities, in trees and there are no perches available. Once you
do build a bluebird house, you can watch the bluebirds fly in and
out so gracefully you will see what I mean about no perches. It's
amazing there are not bluebirds stuck against the back wall like
darts on a dart board.
Size
is somewhat important, but bluebirds do not seem to mind if it's
not perfect. A crooked lean-to that has tight sides and top, an
entrance hole with a diameter size of one and one-half inches,
and put at the right site will almost always have a bird in it.
If not a Bluebird, maybe an Ash throated Flycatcher, tree
swallow, plain titmouse, wren, or other native bird. It's still a
life support system for a desirable bird. Note: Ash-throated
flycatchers and plain titmice have nested in bluebird houses in
our area, usually after or before the bluebirds.
Size
is somewhat important, but bluebirds do not seem to mind if it's
not perfect. A crooked lean-to that has tight sides and top, an
entrance hole with a diameter size of one and one-half inches,
and put at the right site will almost always have a bird in it.
If not a Bluebird, maybe an Ash throated Flycatcher, tree
swallow, plain titmouse, wren, or other native bird. It's still a
life support system for a desirable bird. Note: Ash-throated
flycatchers and plain titmice have nested in bluebird houses in
our area, usually after or before the bluebirds.
Mice can be a problem if the weeds are allowed to grow too
high against the bluebird house post or in large numbers in the
area. Bottom vent holes need to be small, no more than the
corners trimmed. Mice and even snakes get into the bottom holes
if they're very big. That's pretty exciting when you check the
boxes....
Aspect of a Bluebird Nest
Location,
location, location! The real estate must be good or it won't
sell. Please face the bluebird house away from the prevailing
wind. This is usually facing the entrance hole slightly to the
southeast. The area in the front of the nest house should be very
low, herbaceous vegetation only, for as far as possible, (the
area we use has annual lupines (Lupinus
nanus), tarweed (Hemizonia pentactis), clarkia (Clarkia
purpurea), and needle grass (Stipa
cernua), etc.) except a perch about the height of the house
or close to it (4-6 ft. is optimal for the house) and about
several feet away from the front, or side of the house, so that
the young birds can make an easy first flight. If there is no
natural perch then I place a fence post in the ground at the
appropriate spot. Western bluebirds seem to like the house
situated in the sun, or at least no thick vegetation directly
over the house. Bluebirds don't mind having their houses put on a
tree, as long as the canopy is high or very open. Bluebirds don't
like thick vegetation near the house. Bluebirds don't like bodies
of water in front of the house. Attach the house with a screw to
a smooth steel post or a wooden post.
Parasites seem to occur in greater numbers in moist shady
spots. Some of the parasites that affect western bluebirds are
maggots of blowflies (pretty gross), blood parasites, and even
bacterial enteritis.
Cleanout of Bluebird Nests
From the literature (and our experience) it looks like so
far
that western bluebirds will use the same nest for 3-5 years (in
our central California coast ranges area), (it takes lots of time
and energy to build a nest just like it takes a lot of time and
money to build a house) and then the parasites become a problem
and the birds will avoid the nest. Then we remove the nest and
clean out the nest box with a dry cloth or whisk broom.
If everything goes right you should get these!
Bluebird
Habitat
Western
bluebirds in California prefer open woodlands. They do move into
more lowland areas in the winter. Western Bluebirds are not found
in the eastern desert areas of California, or the lower portion
of the San Joaquin Valley, or the highest mountains.
When you think of western bluebirds and nesting think of a
few
large trees or shrubs and open areas with low, non-woody plants.
A good example is an open area of grass and herbs with bare
ground in between the plants with a few trees dotted around here
and there. The problem is that most of California is covered by
alien, annual grasses that will only be fair habitat for the
western bluebird if the grass is kept under control by grazing
animals, weeding humans, or mowing humans! It is very difficult
to spy an insect and even harder to catch it and then fly away,
not to mention seeing predators coming to eat you, hampered by
tall, thick, clumps of alien grasses. If you can get rid of the
alien, annual grasses and replace them with native grasses so
much the better.
Western
bluebirds are like Goldilocks. Bluebirds need not "too
little grass" (not so many insects to eat), not "too
much grass" (hard to find the insects and catch them and fly
away easily, and can't see predators coming) but "just the
right amount" mixed in with herbs.
Bluebirds perch in a tree or on a fence post or whatever
is
handy and wait and when they spy an insect, the bluebird will
gracefully swoop down and capture it and fly back up to the perch
and eat it.
Bluebirds will also sit on a perch and when an insect
flies
by, the bluebird flies out and captures it in the air. Makes it
look easy.
Bluebirds will perch in a bush loaded with berries and
pick
off several berries close by and then move to another spot and
pick off several more berries, etc.
