Our first nest of bluebirds finally hatched and fledged. It seems like the hen had been on the nest and tending to babies forever, but it was probably just a month in all. We were disappointed that only one baby bluebird survived. We think there were two that fledged, but now it’s one. This “only child” bluebird, however, will likely be the fattest bluebird chick on the planet. I have been loading the bluebird dish with fat, juicy mealworms for weeks and the young one has not missed many meals. The other day, the little fellow landed on the luggage rack of my Jeep, wondering where his mealworms were.
I am also feeding mealworms to two other bird families.
One is a pair of cardinals nesting in the front hedge and I think it’s the same pair we had last year.
Usually, cardinals are among of the most skittish birds in my yard. I make an appearance and they vamoose. But last year, a male cardinal quickly caught on to my mealworm-feeding regimen and would almost land on my shoulder when I went out to feed. I’m sure it’s the same bird, as he still begs for mealies. When I feed the bluebirds in their bowl, I also toss a handful of worms on the ground and the male cardinal pounces on them quickly. At first, he fed the female, apparently a mating ritual, but now both cardinals pick up the worms and fly off to their nest. I also have a song sparrow who has figured out that if he flies in quickly enough, he also can have a worm or two for his family. We have watched the sparrows in a birdhouse near out bedroom window since early spring. We think they are now on their second nest. It’s the same male sparrow from that birdhouse that comes to feed.
It seems I have created something of a welfare state for birds in my own back yard. But you know what? I love every minute of it. The more the merrier and I just ordered another 5,000 mealworms.