A Publication of North Fork Audubon Society, Inc

As we transition into the cooler months please enjoy our Fall/Winter Newsletter. In this issue, you’ll find a recap of our Bird Song Project: Music in the Native Gardens from August, where nature, music, and community came together in harmony. We also feature an insightful interview with Tom Damiani, offering valuable tips on bluebird box monitoring, and a heartwarming story of an owl rescue that followed a collaborative event hosted by North Fork Audubon Society and Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center. We hope you enjoy these stories and feel inspired to stay connected with nature through the season.

Bird Song Project Soars
**by Colleen McDonough &**
**Helen Hooke**

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT….

The North Fork Audubon Society hosted an afternoon of musical performances, bird calls, poetry readings, a drum circle, and docent-led tours of the gardens at the Roy Latham Nature Center at the 55-acre Inlet Pond County Park in Greenport, NY.

“Bird Song Project: Music in the Native Gardens” took place on August 18 and was free and open to the public.

The event was funded in part by a grant from the Suffolk County Department of Economic Development and Planning. The goal was to attract, educate and entertain through a celebratory afternoon of music, while showcasing native plant gardens and enhancing community understanding of native plants, pollinator insects, seeds – and birds, which provide a music of their own. By all accounts it was a soaring success as you can see from the photos!

Battle of the Cavity Nesters
**by Peggy Lauber**

Male Eastern Bluebird by Keith Kennedy

The Eastern Bluebird is the New York State Bird. It is a small and elusive bird, with breathtakingly beautiful blue plumage and an orange breast, and can be found locally in open woodlands, farmlands and orchards. The blue feathers appear iridescent in the sunlight if you are lucky enough to catch a glimpse of a male Bluebird in flight – a sight I guarantee you will never forget.

Bluebirds can be found on the North Fork, sometimes even in the winter. They are secondary cavity nesters, meaning they will nest in trees in cavities already made by Woodpeckers and other birds. When it was discovered that Bluebirds were in rapid decline in the eastern United States (because of habitat loss), a movement began to put up man-made nest box “trails” in suitable habitats. These boxes have also been widely adopted by Tree Swallows, another lovely bird (also an insectivore) that needs our help.

Bluebird nest with Mom on nest. Their nests are very neatly woven out of dried grasses. Photo by P. Lauber

While people are enthusiastic about putting up nest boxes, there are many “do’s & don’ts” when it comes to which boxes to use, where to position them and – most importantly – how and when to monitor them, to protect these vulnerable birds.

It’s a jungle out there – with Eastern Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, House Sparrows and House Wrens all fighting for the same nest cavities in which to lay eggs and raise their young. And what about these other birds, should they be allowed to nest in the boxes?

What’s nest box monitor to do?

I decided to ask an expert – Tom Damiani, who in addition to his long-time relationship with North Fork Audubon (as board member and bird walk leader for over 30 years) serves on the board of the New York State Bluebird Society.

Q. What does it mean to “monitor” a nest box?

A. Nest boxes, specifically installed for Eastern Bluebirds and Tree Swallows need to be monitored once a week so that the monitor can see exactly what is happening in the box. The season usually starts in early April for Bluebirds and early May for Tree Swallows. Things to look for are what kind of nest is in the box. If the nest appears to have been made by the invasive House Sparrow, that nest and/or eggs need to be removed. House sparrows and European starlings are not protected by law so their nests and eggs can be disposed of.

It takes some skill to learn to distinguish the different kinds of nests. Bluebird nests are very neat and made solely of dried grass. Tree Swallow nests look very similar, except they line the nests with feathers of other birds such as ducks, owls or pigeons. Invasive House Sparrow nests are very messy looking and may even have scraps of plastic or other human trash!

The nest boxes should be checked once a week so that any irregularities can be dealt with quickly, so that native cavity nesters can be given a chance establish themselves and subsequently defend against any interruptions of their nesting cycle. This is simple task that requires the monitor to open the nest box and peer inside to see what actions are needed or hopefully having nothing to do but record what the findings are and follow up weekly until the target species young fledge.

Other things to look for are wasps nesting in the nest box, mice taking up residence, and even bats roosting!

Q. What happens if boxes are installed, and they are not monitored?

A. The main issue is that the boxes tend to become House Sparrow breeding boxes which is bad news for Bluebirds and Tree Swallows since the House Sparrow is really an enemy of both species. House Wrens will also nest in the boxes, and while these birds are not considered to be invasive, they will kill Bluebirds and/or will construct nests directly on top of Bluebird nests.

Tree Swallows always line their nests with feathers, usually white.

House Wrens will build their nests right on top of Bluebird nests. They are always made of sticks and built very high.

Q. Are Bluebirds and Tree Swallows endangered?

A. Bluebirds and Tree Swallows aren’t on any endangered species list, in fact now they are doing quite well. It seems that because of organizations such as the New York State Bluebird Society, their numbers will always be good if the Bluebird trails are monitored and tended adequately.

Q. What do you suggest when people ask, “Should I put up Bluebird nest boxes in my backyard?”

First thing is I ask is how much property do you have, and is it mostly open space. Bluebirds need large open fields or lawns to hawk insects from their favorite perch. If the requirements are met for the property, I then let them know that the nest box should have and inch and a half opening, mounted on a post or pole and a predator guard needs to be installed. Once this is completed, the nest box must be monitored once a week. If the property owner is on board with all of this, then they should go ahead, but should reach out to an expert when any questions arise. Also, they should join The New York State Bluebird Society and send in their results after the nesting season is over.

Q. What have you learned over the years monitoring cavity nesting birds?

A. I learned that getting more and more folks involved is a very good thing. It creates a connection to nature that they may not have experienced in their lives. The rest is “on the job training”. You learn as you go, but you need good basic knowledge of what you need to do when you run into situations that can be challenging.

Q. I bet you have some interesting stories about surprises you’ve found when checking the boxes?

A. I think things you may find in the nest box is the most interesting part of monitoring. Mice, bats, wasps, or eggs disappearing with no evidence of how they did.

I remember one instance of two female tree swallows tending the eggs at same time!

Another one involves a specially made nest box made very deep to make it secure from a raccoon reaching in and getting a hold of eggs or chicks. As a result, there was a tree swallow nesting in the front of the box, and a house wren taking up residence in the back! And everyone fledged!

Starting a bluebird trail on Shelter Island was a very rewarding experience, it allowed me to meet so many residents and get them connected to the birds and monitoring. The more people are connected to nature, the more the earth gets protected. Everything comes from the earth. There is nothing more important than treating our Mother Earth the respect and care that she deserves.

Lucky for me and Olive that I attended the lecture by Donald Lanham, of the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center, sponsored by the North Fork Audubon Society! The subject was the rescue and transport of injured wild animals.

I first saw Olive on my deck, the afternoon after the day of the mighty windstorm we had on April 4, 2024.

It was so utterly unexpected! All alone, a little stumpy gorgeous and calm creature! I guessed it was a Great Horned owlet as I have had a pair that has nested nearby for years. Olive must have been blown out of her nest. There were no adult owls about that I could see or hear.

From the lecture I knew: not to approach her; try and discern if she is injured in anyway; do not feed or give her water and notify the EAW Rescue Center.

The response was prompt, knowledgeable and positive. Two rescue volunteers, Deb and David, arrived within a half hour. Together, we sat for a couple of hours and simply observed the wonder of Olive on the deck, placid, in the sun, snoozing, not alarmed. Then Jake, a “climber” from the Rescue Center and his partner, Mary, called, saying they were on their way from Riverhead.

If the Owlet is not injured, the priority is to return it to its nest (renesting). To do that first the nest must be located. For that, a climber is needed to see and identify an owl’s nest: not a squirrel’s nest or an abandoned nest. With Mary’s assistance, Jake suited up to find the nest: crampons, carabiners, harness, safety ropes, belays, helmet. A nest is indicated by owl detritus at the base of the nest, such as regurgitated pellets; bones; feathers and in this case, one-half a rabbit!

Jake was able to locate the nest but determined it was too damaged by the storm to hold Olive’s weight. In that event, or if the nest can’t be found, another nest is constructed and placed nearby for the owlet. Meanwhile, Jake and Mary had gently covered Olive with a blanket and placed her in a big tote box, in which she continued to be apparently calm and snoozing.

Later (much), Rocco arrived. He was delayed because he was “rescuing baby ducks from a drain.” Rocco is also a climber and owl whisperer. He checked out Olive and found she was in good shape, not dehydrated; about one month old; couldn’t fly yet, but could hop and glide. Olive did, from time to time, make a “clacking“ noise with her beak snapping together, certainly an indication of alarm, yet she calmed down when being held by Rocco. He had constructed a nest for her of a medium tote box with one end cut out. He fixed it to the tree below the parent’s nest, put small conifer branches in it and the back half of a very dead rabbit that had also blown out of the nest. Rocco then carried Olive up the ladder to her new nest and placed her in it.

Olive was very calm the whole time. Rocco said she had a 50/50 likelihood of staying in the nest. He told me that in the event Olive was on the ground in the morning, to call him.

Very early the following morning, I went into my living room, which has large windows. I looked up and there was a parent owl, looking at me, balancing precariously on telephone wires just for a few seconds before it flew away! I am convinced that the owl parent wanted me to see it and let me know that they had the situation in hand...it was a relief for me!

I then looked from my study into Olive’s nest just in time to see her scarfing down a huge mouse, obviously delivered to her by a parent.

After 5 days of being looked after by her parents while still in her temporary nest, Olive jumped down to the ground. She worked her way across my back yard, parents watching nearby, to the far corner, behind a huge tree, where two fences meet: a very very safe place for her. She can’t fly yet, but she’s back with her family, who remain near by day and night, until she can.

I cannot express the sense of wonder and awe that I felt in the presence of such a magnificent creature – and that she remains a healthy, wild owl.

Many thanks to all involved: North Fork Audubon Society; the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center, and their volunteers from me, Olive and her folks for all the work they do for the rescue of wild animals.

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