One Lone Survivor..

I wasn't going to check the nestbox today.

I was going to wait until tomorrow as I was headed out of town for a few days.  My plans changed and I ended up leaving today instead, one day early, so I decided to check on my way out of town..and I am so glad that I did.

It must have been fate, if you believe in such things.  Yesterday, there were 5 healthy baby bluebirds. Today, when I opened the nestbox, I had a quick look, snapped a couple of pics, but something just didn't look right through the viewfinder. The babies were not snugged in together the way they were on the previous two visits. One was on top of the rest and I could see a pair of little legs upright in the nest.

Sammy is the one on top, with his back towards the camera.
 Sadly, the other four nestlings were dead.

With a lump in my throat, I reached in and touched one of the bottom ones..the baby was so cold and didn't move. I gently picked it up and saw little blood droplets on it's head and what looked like peck marks.  Sadly, it was gone.

I picked up 3 more and they were all the same, lifeless.

From my research, I suspect that either house sparrows (although I have never seen house sparrows around here) or european starlings pecked them on the head to death to possibly claim the nestbox.  A vicious act and a tragic ending to their short lives.

I reached for the last one, the one that had been on top of all the others, I expected it also to be dead. It was alive!

I was relieved, happy and nervous at the same time. It wasn't moving very much, it's eyes were still closed, and it was a little cool to the touch, but it was definitely alive..the sole survivor out of five beautiful nestlings. I quickly and carefully checked it over for any injuries, and finding none visible, I gently placed it back into it's nest, alone.

I closed up the nestbox and with a heavy heart, placed the dead babies in a bag and walked across the field to wait anxiously for the parents to come back and feed the little one that was left.

I watched vigilantly for over 2 hours and saw no sign of them anywhere in the field or the surrounding trees. On my previous two visits, both parents were back feeding the babies within a few minutes. All I could think was either something had happened to them too, or they had abandoned the nest thinking all their babies were dead.

I think I knew, even before I realized this tiny baby was on his own, that if it needed help I would provide it.  It wasn't a difficult decision.  I knew it was illegal to keep and care for this little one. And I didn't really know how to care for it. But, it needed help to even have a chance to live.
I could not walk away and leave it to die. That was NOT an option.

So, I gently scooped it up out of the nestbox, carried it in my cupped hand against my chest back to my car. I drove back home and held the baby in my hands to warm it up for about 20 minutes and once it no longer felt cool, I tucked it into a towel to keep it warm.  Next, I got some supplies to take with me, as I still had to head out of town.

I found a little box with a lid, laid a small towel in it and arranged kleenex into a cozy nest inside a small round plastic container.  Then I carefully tucked the baby bluebird in and closed the lid partially so air could get in and to make it dark, as it was used to.  I had mealworms at home for feeding my yard birds, so I put some in a container to bring with me. I also got tweezers and paper towels.  I looked up a song bird rehabber and stored the number in my phone. Then, the baby Eastern Bluebird and I set off on our journey.

As soon as I was on the road, I called the rehabber (my phone can be used with the car speakers, hands-free) and explained the situation and asked for advice on feeding, care, etc. She asked if I could get the bird to her and I couldn't as she was over 4 hours away from me. She was very knowledgeable and friendly, and gave me all the information she could on how to help this poor little orphan stay alive, grow and be healthy, ready to be returned to the wild where he should be.

And so the story of raising this lone little survivor begins...

Second look at the bluebird nestlings

Two days later I returned to check on the baby Eastern Bluebirds and their parents. I watched from a distance at first, and saw both parents going back and forth with food for the nestlings. A good sign that all was well with the babies.

I quickly and quietly opened the nestbox and was relieved to see all five babies still snug and safe in their home. They are 7-8 days old today.

Five Eastern Bluebird Nestlings  7-8 days old

A couple of quick pics and I closed up the box. I didn't want to disturb the babies any more than was necessary to make sure they were safe, healthy looking and free from blowflies and ants.

Blowfly larva can infest a nest attach themselves to the little nestlings in order to feed on their blood, which can do serious harm and possible death to the babies..vampire-like awful little beasts. If discovered in a nestbox, many authoriative sights recommend removing the blowfly larva and/or replacing the nest with dry grass made into a "nest" and returning the nestlings to the new clean nest.

I watched for the parents and they were back within 3 minutes with food for their offspring.

Five Eastern Bluebird Nestlings  7-8 days old

Finding an Eastern Bluebird Nest

The raising of Sammy, an orphaned male Eastern Bluebird nestling, all began with a drive around our area bird watching.  As I drove down the road behind us, I saw a brilliant flash of blue flying above the road. It landed on a hydro line..a male Eastern Bluebird!! The first one I have ever seen! He was absolutely breath-taking and I was so excited!

I tried to find him again as he flew off down the road, so I was driving slowly. Then I spotted a nestbox at an opening in a mown field and I pulled in to it. I discovered 4 nestboxes set up in a Bluebird nestbox trail with a male Eastern Bluebird perched on the fourth and farthest box. I couldn't believe my luck

I checked each box carefully and quickly, and discovered 6 black-capped chickadee eggs in the first box.

Six Black-capped Chickadee eggs

The second and third boxes had bits of moss in them, the beginning of chickadee nests, but not completed.

The fourth box held a wondrous treasure: 5 nestling bluebirds about 5-6 days old as best as I could tell. 

Five Eastern Bluebird Nestlings - 5 to 6 days old

The excitement I felt was incredible! They were so beautiful and delicate looking, all snuggled tightly in their nest. I took some quick pictures, closed the nestbox and moved far back into the field to make sure the parents came back to feed them.

Within minutes, both mom and dad were back with juicy green caterpillars and what looked like a big black ant and a black cricket for their babies. What good parents! I stayed and watched for several minutes, just fascinated by how many trips the parents were making to feed their young. They were back every few minutes with a new mouthful of food and would usually perch on the top of the box and look around a bit before entering. Watching for danger I imagined.

The dad was simply gorgeous with rich cobalt blue feathers and a lovely russet breast.

Male Eastern Bluebird - Sammy's Dad

The mom, as usual for song birds, was more subdued: a lighter, greyer-blue and a much softer, duller breast.

Female Eastern Bluebird - Sammy's Mom

I quietly left and drove home with such a feeling of awe and wonder at viewing this intimate look into the lives of this family of bluebirds.

I began researching this beautiful bird on the internet and ordered some books about them. I also started writing notes so I could report this nest to Project Nestwatch for Bird Studies Canada.