If you have been saying, “I hope these birds would visit our yard” then we have good news. You do not need open meadows to attract bluebirds, who love eating insects. With just a few changes to your yard, even small suburban ones, you can attract bluebirds all year long.
Bring Hummingbirds Right To Your Window!
Check PriceWhy Do Bluebirds Enjoy Your Smaller Yard?
Save this article for later so you don't lose it. Enter your email and I'll send it to you now—plus you'll get my favorite backyard birding tips delivered to your inbox.
Here’s the secret, bluebirds don’t need wide open and undisturbed prairies. What they do need is a combination of open areas for foraging and safe perching sites in the vicinity (within safe flight distance). Consider the edges of your lawn where it meets the shrub border, or even the sparsely populated open areas in a backyard garden. These types of spaces replicate the preferred habitat bluebirds seek: grasslands interspersed with trees, bordered by fence lines, or rural suburban yards with some open space.
Bluebirds like to nest in cavities and will hunt for insects at higher elevations. They will hunt and catch beetles, caterpillars, and grasshoppers in short grass. They will clear grass, in your mowed lawn, or even a small garden bed. You don't need a farm, just the right conditions in the area you have.
How To Choose The Best Nest Box Location
When using Bluebird houses, knowing the location is very important. Please try to mount the bluebird houses on a pole or post that is 5 to 6 feet off the ground. Select a location where they will face an open area, like a lawn, garden, or clear area with no dense vegetation. Bluebirds are very cautious of areas that have thick wooded spaces. Do not place boxes too close to any dense trees or shrubs because that is where the predators like to hide.
When positioning the entrance hole, if possible, aim it towards open spaces and avoid positioning it towards the direction of the prevailing winds. This allows adult birds to have clearer flight paths, as well as easy identification to them of possible danger. Places which would work well include along the fences and edges of properties, as well as those overlooking sunny patches of lawns. Backyards of sizes of 20 to 30 feet of open spaces are even enough as bluebirds are very adaptable.
Constructing or Purchasing the Correct Nest Box
Bluebirds have particular specifications when it comes to bird houses. The preferred measurements for an entrance hole is 1.5 inches so that larger species, such as starlings, are kept out, but Eastern, Western, and Mountain Bluebirds can enter freely. The interior floor should be 4-5 inches square and the depth should be 8-12 inches from hole to floor.
It's essential to have ventilation and drainage in your nest boxes. Choose or make a box with ventilation holes on the top and drainage holes on the bottom to prevent water from collecting in the box. Also, do not choose boxes with a perch on the front. Perches are not needed for bluebirds, and could attract other birds you do not want to have. If you are good with your hands, The North American Bluebird Society has free nest box plans available, or you can buy a good box from a birding supply store.
Finally, don’t forget to put on a predator guard! Just a plain wooden or metal baffle underneath the box on the mounting pole will deter raccoons, cats, and snakes. Also, for woodpeckers or squirrels that may try to expand the entrance hole, you can put a metal guard around the entrance.
WHITEHORSE Cedar Bluebird House Weatherproof Nest Box
Check PriceInstall Perches for Hunting and Resting
Get our free Hummingbird Attraction Guide! Plus, we'll send you our best tips for attracting more birds to your yard.
Bluebirds are perch hunters. This means they sit somewhere, like a fence post, and scan the ground, then dive down to snag, or catch, insects. If you yard does not have a lot of natural spots for bluebirds to perch, you can create some. You can add fence posts, garden stakes, or T-posts around your yard to create some good areas for bluebirds to perch.
You don’t need to buy expensive equipment to get started. A plain wooden stake with a crossbar or shelf works perfectly. Set up these perches every 10-20 feet in open locations with insect activity, as well as near your bluebird boxes. Also, indigenous plants to your area that you don’t mind sacrificing like the dogwood, viburnum, or serviceberry, can offer excellent perch and habitat value They will add to the habitat value of the area for other species year-round, which is a good reason to use them.
Perches offer bluebirds functional habitat and hunting opportunities; once the terrain is established, bluebirds will be quick to utilize them.
Provide Fresh Water Water They Can't Resist
Placing a clean and clear water feature in your yard can be an absolute game changer. Bluebirds love bird baths. They will use a bird bath for drinking and bathing. Bluebirds are attracted to bird baths that are shallow and safe for them to perch on. Place a bird bath that is no deeper than 1.5 to 2 inches. Bluebirds prefer edges that are shallow enough for them to wade in and use the edges for a perch.
Adding flat rocks or small pebbles will give a variety of depths for the bath. Adding rocks also gives smaller birds secure footing. Another tip is to use a spot that has nearby perches such as a low shrub or a fence post that is within 5 to 10 feet. This gives birds an area to survey before they commit to the bath. If you want to attract bluebirds, a small fountain or dripper is a great idea. The sound and movement of flowing water irrefutably attracts birds and will get the attention of birds from a distance.
Changing the water every few days can help keep the water fresh, especially during warmer days. Birds will come to a clean birdbath and so will many other animals. Routine cleaning birdbaths also help promote a healthy ecosystem.
Mealworms and berries should be seen as feeding supplements.
Bluebirds mainly eat insects but giving them mealworms, especially when they are nesting, will make them want to stay in your yard. Put live or dried mealworms in a shallow dish or a feeder designed for mealworms close to your nesting box. While live mealworms are usually more appealing to bluebirds, dried mealworms will work once the bluebirds learn to identify them as food.
Bluebirds scout for nesting sites in early spring, so begin offering mealworms then. Just some mealworms a day can lead to multiple visits from the bluebirds, as the parent birds need lots of protein to raise their chicks. Mealworms can be purchased at pet stores, a birding specific retailer, or online.
To attract bluebirds in the winter, it is important to provide food sources. Serviceberry, elderberry, dogwood, and holly shrubs produce berries that bluebirds eat in the fall and winter when other food sources are scarce. These native berry-producing shrubs are beautiful and provide habitat for birds so you will attract other species as well as pollinators.
WORMSKING 2LB Dried Mealworms for Birds
Check PriceProtect Yourself from Predators the Smart Way
Just like food and shelter, creating a safe environment is important. It is a good idea to take a few precautions to address potential threats to bluebird nests, such as raccoons, snakes, house cats, and even house sparrows. Putting a metal pole baffle under your nest box is one of the easiest and most effective ways to do this. These baffles are cone-shaped and stop climbing predators from getting to your box.
For those with many nesting boxes, it is best to space them 250 to 300 feet apart. During the nesting season, bluebirds become very aggressive towards their surroundings, spacing the boxes helps minimize competition as well as the stress of the birds. Appropriate spacing also helps to reduce aggressive interactions with other nesting species, such as the Tree Swallows, which also use cavities.
Please keep your outdoor cats indoors during nesting season. Even if they have been fed, cats still pose a significant threat to birds that feed and nest on the ground. If House Sparrows have become an issue (they are known to take possession of bluebird boxes), you may want to try some of the special sparrow traps, or move the boxes to locations away from buildings that have nesting sparrows.
Checking your nest boxes once a week during breeding season helps you catch problems early. A quick look inside will allow you to check for parasites, damaged nests, or unwanted campers, allowing you to step in before things go wrong.
Bringing bluebirds to your small yard is possible. You need to have the right habitat, food, and safety. Make some changes to your yard, and watch your bluebird oasis develop over the seasons. To begin, try one or two changes, see how bluebirds respond, and continue adjusting. You will enjoy the bright blue wings in no time!
Happy birding!
