Nesting Blues

Over the last couple weeks I've enjoyed watching Eastern Bluebirds take up residence in one of my nest boxes. Once committed, they work frantically entering and exiting the nest, carrying bits and pieces of grass and pine straw to it. This particular nest box is attached to my grape vine trellis located in the back yard.

In this photo the female (the one hanging on the front of the house) is carrying some nesting material in her beak and is about to pack it in the nest box. The female bluebird does about 95% of the nest building. The male will occasionally bring nesting material to the nest in the beginning but it doesn't last long. I've also noticed that whatever little contribution he does make tends to be redone by the female (sound familiar?).

This particular nest is getting close to completion. Hopefully there will be eggs in a few days!

The Carolina Wren

One of my favorite birds to watch is the Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus). These little spunky birds never seem to sit still. They will hop along and dart from one spot to another more often than they actually fly. They come across to me as a very curious birds, hanging out around the house, under the deck, peaking in flower pots and any other bucket or pail left outside.

Another reason I'm especially fond of this little bird is its song. Although Carolina wrens are small, they are very vocal, especially the male. The male can be heard whistling any time of the day and any time of the year. Click on the link below to hear the song.

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/audio/Carolina_Wren.html

If you have Carolina wrens around your house in the spring then their likely to have a nest nearby. I've noticed from my own experiences that their especially fond of hanging flower pots and will use whatever cubby hole is available to house its nest--holes in walls of houses, barns, under porches, holes in fence posts, or even nest boxes.

One neat thing I learned recently is that a Carolina wren pair bond may form between a male and a female at any time of the year and will stay together for life.

Go visit Bird Photography Weekly #21 to see other great photos of birds.

Bird Photography Weekly #20 - Pine Warbler

This week I chose the pine warbler for my bird photography weekly pic.

Pine warbles are a frequent visitors to my feeders, especially during the winter months. They're the only warbler that eats mostly seed - as this one below is about to do.

Keep a lookout for pine warblers at your feeders.