May 9, 2007-Delaware Wildlife Area- Tuttle
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Photos By Frank Germann
9 May 2007 - Delaware Wildlife Area Report and more.
PANHANDLE ROAD GRID, 25 NEST BOXES PLUS TWO BOXES NEAR PARKING LOT.
All boxes hold nests in different stages of construction. One box holds five bluebird nestlings three days old. Two Tree Swallow nests with eggs were found in other boxes.
LEONARDSBURG ROAD GRID, 25 NEST BOXES.
Seven nest boxes hold Tree Swallow nests with eggs. All but one box show nests in different stages of construction. The lone box has a huge bloodstain on its front where a winged predator left its mark.
Comment: At this time in 2006, of the 52 nest boxes listed above, 37 had Tree Swallow nests with eggs. In other words, four times as many nests had eggs in 2006 than during the same period this year. A cold spring is most likely the reason for this delay.
Also, in 2001, I analyzed 35 nest histories that had produced two broods of Tree Swallows during the same season and found that if the first egg of the season appears before May 11, there is time for a nest box to raise two swallow families. Therefore, second broods should be less common than the rate of one of four boxes recorded in 2006. A late start does limit production, or so I predict. We will see.
GREEN TREE MARSH. This is the cottonwood/willow "swamp" along Leonardsburg Road before the flood levee. I have fifteen nest boxes at seven locations in this marsh, all designed for Prothonotary Warblers. The boxes have 1-1/4 inch entrance holes and I must wade in leg-deep water in beaver canals to reach the boxes.
I counted four male prothonotaries singing and two pairs of my boxes had moss deposited in them. Females arrive from migration after the males to make the final decision of where to nest. I was privileged to watch a male "yellow willow warbler" sing on his nest box 15 feet from me. Their yellow approaches orange and they have blue-gray wings. What a treat! My nest boxes have stiff competition in this wet world since Redheaded Woodpeckers continue to whittle numerous natural cavities in the trees. The cell tower Ospreys also hang out there.
I also have warbler boxes in the KILBOURNE SWAMP north of #1 Osprey platform at Alum Creek lake. No sign of warblers there, yet. Two boxes have 40-mm entrances as I try to attract swamp bluebirds. One of these boxes has its first Tree Swallow egg and the other box, near Hogback Road, had a male bluebird inspecting it as the sun set on May 9.
ALSO, for minutes around 13:30, a male Osprey was doing his courtship display with high altitude chirps, wing flapping, all while carrying a fish. The display took place between platforms #1 and #2. Both pairs of nesting Ospreys were at their platforms and from my vantage point in the swamp, I could see (8x) no birds on platforms #2 (goose-less) and #3. Perhaps, a female was perched along the western shore where I could not see. TM chased the amorous male away.
On May 3, I planted twenty additional nest structures for warblers along Alum Creek Lake and Creek. More about this project later.
In conclusion, there is more to bluebirding than bluebirds. Dick Tuttle
Photos By Frank Germann
9 May 2007 - Delaware Wildlife Area Report and more.
PANHANDLE ROAD GRID, 25 NEST BOXES PLUS TWO BOXES NEAR PARKING LOT.
All boxes hold nests in different stages of construction. One box holds five bluebird nestlings three days old. Two Tree Swallow nests with eggs were found in other boxes.
LEONARDSBURG ROAD GRID, 25 NEST BOXES.
Seven nest boxes hold Tree Swallow nests with eggs. All but one box show nests in different stages of construction. The lone box has a huge bloodstain on its front where a winged predator left its mark.
Comment: At this time in 2006, of the 52 nest boxes listed above, 37 had Tree Swallow nests with eggs. In other words, four times as many nests had eggs in 2006 than during the same period this year. A cold spring is most likely the reason for this delay.
Also, in 2001, I analyzed 35 nest histories that had produced two broods of Tree Swallows during the same season and found that if the first egg of the season appears before May 11, there is time for a nest box to raise two swallow families. Therefore, second broods should be less common than the rate of one of four boxes recorded in 2006. A late start does limit production, or so I predict. We will see.
GREEN TREE MARSH. This is the cottonwood/willow "swamp" along Leonardsburg Road before the flood levee. I have fifteen nest boxes at seven locations in this marsh, all designed for Prothonotary Warblers. The boxes have 1-1/4 inch entrance holes and I must wade in leg-deep water in beaver canals to reach the boxes.
I counted four male prothonotaries singing and two pairs of my boxes had moss deposited in them. Females arrive from migration after the males to make the final decision of where to nest. I was privileged to watch a male "yellow willow warbler" sing on his nest box 15 feet from me. Their yellow approaches orange and they have blue-gray wings. What a treat! My nest boxes have stiff competition in this wet world since Redheaded Woodpeckers continue to whittle numerous natural cavities in the trees. The cell tower Ospreys also hang out there.
I also have warbler boxes in the KILBOURNE SWAMP north of #1 Osprey platform at Alum Creek lake. No sign of warblers there, yet. Two boxes have 40-mm entrances as I try to attract swamp bluebirds. One of these boxes has its first Tree Swallow egg and the other box, near Hogback Road, had a male bluebird inspecting it as the sun set on May 9.
ALSO, for minutes around 13:30, a male Osprey was doing his courtship display with high altitude chirps, wing flapping, all while carrying a fish. The display took place between platforms #1 and #2. Both pairs of nesting Ospreys were at their platforms and from my vantage point in the swamp, I could see (8x) no birds on platforms #2 (goose-less) and #3. Perhaps, a female was perched along the western shore where I could not see. TM chased the amorous male away.
On May 3, I planted twenty additional nest structures for warblers along Alum Creek Lake and Creek. More about this project later.
In conclusion, there is more to bluebirding than bluebirds. Dick Tuttle
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