Nest Monitoring

Nest Monitoring-Bluebirds For Aquidneck

We will study whether the availability of prime nesting habitat will lure Bluebirds to Aquidneck Island. We will place a host of birdhouses in strategic positions to encourage nesting birds. We will call on local scouting organizations to help in building the birdhouses.

Bluebird facts:
In New England, the male Bluebird may arrive first, with the female arriving one or two weeks later. Although arrival occurs in March, not much time is spent at the prospective nesting site. In April, the pair stakes out a territory, and as the weather warms up, starts building a nest. Depending on the temperature, the nest may take from a week to a month to build. One to five days after completion, the first egg is laid, ond thereafter one egg is laid daily until the clutch is complete(normally 4 or 5 eggs). Incubation begins when the last egg is laid and continues 14 days. The nestlings, fed by both parents, remain in the nest 15 to 19 days. After fledging, the young are cared for by both parents for 10-15 days, but then are left in the care of the male, while the female renests. The young of both broods may remain together as a family well into the fall. Download the plans to a Bluebird nesting box compliments of the Audobon Society of Rhode Island. Learn how to perform nestbox monitoring and enter or view our online database.