Every morning, he sits on the fence beside his old bird house. Occasionally, he flits over to the house, peeks inside, then flies back to the fence. He is my lonely bluebird. Last summer, he lost his partner.
The male bird and his mate had selected the house several months before they started nesting in late March. I believe they had nested in the house the previous year. They raised their first brood in early April and had a successful hatch. Three of the chicks survived. Almost immediately the hen was on the nest again, then off, then back on. Finally, we saw one bird that hatched. And the hen disappeared. I don’t know if the nesting ordeal took its toll or if a predator was involved, but she no longer came to the house or feeders. The male with his three tag-alongs continued to visit our sunflower heart feeder, and he inspected the house every day, just in case she might have returned.
Nature is a cruel master. Birds and animals die and we never know. But this lonely little bluebird knows. He sits and waits and hopes.
Bluebirds mate for life, but if one loses a partner, it will find a new mate. We have had bluebirds nest in our yard every year for well over ten years. I hope that by next spring my lonely bluebird will find a new partner, once more set up housekeeping and continue to produce more baby bluebirds.