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Thursday, April 28, 2022

Sparrow wars

The weather here moderated during the past week, providing us with more opportunities to walk outside between the rain showers, but near-freezing temperatures are expected to persist for the next several days. A few returning migrants have been reported locally. I heard an Indigo Bunting singing but never caught sight of it. Winter visitors such as the juncos and White-throated Sparrows have disappeared and the plumage of the male goldfinches is in full breeding splendor.

A Northern Cardinal posed nicely amid buds on a rain-soaked branch:


A wet but perky White-breasted Nuthatch appeared:

On  a sunlit morning. a cardinal emerged from behind one of the many granite boulders which surround the house:

Our Eastern Bluebirds have had mixed success at our two nest boxes. We are quite sure that one pair has eggs in the box near the edge of the woodland. They successfully warded off competitors such as Black-capped Chickadees and Tufted Titmice. 

Another pair of bluebirds claimed the one which is located in the back lawn way from the trees. They faced competition from Tree Swallows, known to prefer boxes in open areas.

On April 19, a flock of Tree Swallows swept in and displaced the bluebirds, which did not put up much of a fight:


The swallows occupied the nest box for about three days, even squabbling with each other over which might claim squatters' rights:

One pair of swallows seemed to have won the prize:

Tree Swallows are handsome birds and graceful fliers (and they consume large numbers of mosquitoes):

The vanquished male bluebird sat passively by after losing a few aerial battles:

Unexpectedly, a new competitor arrived on the scene. I had seen absolutely no House Sparrows until a male of this exotic and invasive species showed up at the feeder on April 23:

That  same day I saw the male and a female trying to gain entrance to the nest box. At first the swallows chased them away, but the sparrows were very aggressive and persistent:



Very quickly, the House Sparrows stuffed the nest with dead grass and leaves:


The swallows appeared to have surrendered. Only one remained, sometimes skirmishing ineffectively with the sparrows and often perching near them. (Speaking anthropomorphically, the sparrows were not ready to negotiate a  truce):

On each of the ensuing days, I have gone out morning and afternoon to remove the sparrows' nesting material, but they are able to replenish it within an hour or so. I love birds, but wish to extend hospitality only to native hole-nesting species such as bluebirds, swallows, chickadees, titmice and wrens. The Tree Swallows still linger periodically, although none have been seen in any more open combat between the species.

I will continue to dissuade the House Sparrows which, along with introduced European Starlings, competed for nesting holes in forests depleted of old growth trees. This contributed to near-extinction of Eastern Bluebirds in the early 1900s . 

On a more peaceful note, I finally photographed the Pileated Woodpecker which I had seen flying over the property twice before. It became the 36th species photographed of the 45 I have seen on or over the property. Not a good image, but its red "mustache" renders it recognizable as a male:


Also on April 26, until turned back by misty precipitation, we walked along the shore of adjacent Diamond Lake. Here is a view of what we could see of the lake, through the trees in the front yard, on April 23rd:

We followed a circuitous route which led along a bluff above the lake:

Dooryard gardens were beginning to show some spring beauty:


Breezes stirred the surface of the lake, signaling rain:

A parting shot of a fine Daffodil next to our mailbox:

Linking to:



Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Natasha Musing


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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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19 comments:

  1. Sounds like the tile of a new reality show - NESTING WARS!!

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  2. The red bird with the rain drops are very pretty photos but I love the bird in flight shots. They're great! #GardenAffair

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  3. I never thought of sparrows chasing out swallows!

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  4. Your photos are so good. I love all the droplets in the bird photos.

    Have a great day.

    https://calrat.blogspot.com

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  5. I haven't seen any tree swallows for a long time..They are beautiful..I remember when I used to mow that they would dive bomb me trying to get the insects stirred up by the mower..Enjoy your weekend..

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  6. Interesting narrative and photos. I would like to know if you have any luck discouraging the house sparrows for good. I tried removing the nest over and over again, then they moved to another bird box and killed the babies in it, and built their new nest on top of the dead babies.

    I've tried every bluebird box in existence, only to find out each one was ineffective in keeping the house sparrow out. I read that a male house sparrow bonds to the nest area of his birth, and will return every year to the same area. The only way to get rid of one is to kill it. I finally had to get rid of my bluebird boxes, although I thought for a while about trapping him in the box and drowning him in a bucket of water.

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    1. Yvonne raises an interesting question-- how to discourage the House Sparrows from displacing native hole-nesting birds. As of yesterday (APR 29) I can report that they seem to have vacated the bluebird box. I removed their nesting materials twice daily for four days in a row. They always replaced it immediately until yesterday morning. Bluebirds and Tree Swallows almost immediately began inspecting it. As of today the nest box remains empty and no birds have claimed it. The bluebirds in the other box seem to be undisturbed. . :

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  7. Greetings and Salutations! I really appreciate seeing your bird photographs. The house sparrows are building their nests with dead grass and twigs. So cute.

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  9. Hello Ken,
    What a great post, I love the Swallow images, great series. The Pileated Woodpecker is always wonderful to see. Pretty Cardinal, Nuthatch and Bluebird photos. I love all the birds and photos. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great weekend.

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  10. How interesting that the Sparrows started taking over. I've never watched nests long enough to see things like this happening. Love the view of the lake and your Spring blooms. I hope you have a beautiful weekend. Oh...love the Pileated too!

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  11. What a terrific series of photographs, Ken!

    The persistence of the House Sparrow demonstrates why they were able to so successfully survive and thrive in the New World. As you point out, at the expense of the near-demise of other species.

    We sometimes forget the underlying reason for all the territorial squabbles we observe each spring. Survival. Plain and simple. But sometimes messy.

    Beautiful walk showing how really pretty your area is!

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  12. Goodness, so much competition! Great photos.

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  13. To watch, record, and share all the nesting actions was great to witness via your blog!! Love all...of course, one I favor is the pileated which I've yet to see in real time.

    Thanks for linking up this weekend! Always appreciate your input.

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  14. Excellent photos! The cardinals really stand out.

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  15. The swallows are so beautiful! I've never seen them that close.
    Thank you for joining us this week at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2022/05/try-some-yummy-pretzel-rolls.html

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  16. You have some amazing pictures here, and I am a little jealous that you could identify an indigo bunting by its call!

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