All,

I conducted the last box check of the season on September 3.  The final figures are as follows:

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         Species           Total nesting attempts    Total eggs    Total nestlings    Total fledglings    Nesting success rate
Carolina Chickadee                    1                             3                      0                            0                              0%
Eastern Bluebird                      63                          243                   140                        98                            41%
                    

Thanks so much to all of you for your dedication this year!  This year you collectively made over 1,600 nest box visits; your efforts were responsible for the fledging of nearly 100 birds!

A special thanks to:

• Ellis Maxey, who made repairs to multiple boxes during the year.

• Cindy Schulz, who set up and monitored the SignupGenius scheduling application.

General note(s):

• A breeding summary is attached.  FYI, I again submitted our data to the Virginia Bluebird Society.  I can provide a copy of that report on request.

• NestWatch:  I deeply appreciate you putting up with the app’s issues.  While the app is a pain, I hope you see the value in the detailed data it provides for the Cornell Lab as well as for our own use via easily retrievable reports generated by the website. 

Future plans:

• Our Bluebird fledge rate is quite low, much lower than NestWatch’s reported rate of 83.2% for our region in 2024.  I will be looking at our “problem boxes” and trying to see if there are any trends that indicate issues we can do something about (e.g., increase or change predator controls, relocate boxes, etc.).

• Boxes on the Deer Run course will be cleaned annually; decrepit boxes will be removed.  Mounting poles will remain in place in case future trail leaders decide to actively monitor the Deer Run course.

Of course as always, please email me with questions, issues, and suggestions.

Thanks for all you’ve done,

To view the entire breeding summary, CLICK HERE.

Bill