The Big Brouhaha in Our ‘Hood

I had just gotten up and glanced out the front window looking in the general direction of our bluebird house, and what does I sees?  Well there were 3 bluebirds flittering around and on the bluebird house rather excitedly and a cardinal and a black capped chickadee zipping around in an apparent squabble.

 I had built the bluebird house from some plans I found on the internet about 3 years ago and I installed it on the post that also holds our mailbox and newspaper box, being too cheap and lazy to buy and install a separate post.  I wasn’t sure how the bluebirds would get along with the postman and the paperboy, but it was worth a shot. 

 Apparently they got along famously because for the last two seasons we had good tenants who generally had 3 clutches of 4 bluebird hatchlings each year.  So this spring seemed like no exception.  When I took an early peak a couple of weeks ago, I spied only 3 eggs, so I immediately thought the new tenants we slackers but didn’t think too much about it, although the eggs did see a little smaller than last time.

 Well after I put my shoes on and went to get the morning paper, I was greeted by a black capped chickadee on the lorapetalum bush next to the mailbox/bluebird house.  He didn’t seem too concerned about me and flew off slowly to the nearby telephone line.  So I decided to take a peak and see how my little bluebirds were doing and…………holy chickadee!  No bluebirds….2 chickadees and one unhatched egg!!!  Obviously we have squatters, but very cute squatters, see below.