2022 Bluebird Nesting Season Ends on a High Note

By Mary Miller, TAS Bluebird Trail Coordinator

Tampa Audubon Society (TAS) members monitor six Bluebird Trails that were very productive this year, with a total of 307 fledglings (267 Eastern Bluebirds, 28 Carolina Chickadees, 6 Tufted Titmice, and 6 Carolina Wrens). Better environmental conditions—a less severe dry season and moderate rainy season with less flooding—meant more insects for the chicks to eat, which helped more of them survive.

Since our first bluebird trail at Flatwoods Park in the 1970s, our trails have expanded to now include Balm-Boyette Preserve, Lake Park, Lettuce Lake Park, Hunter's Green Park, and Sargeant's Park. This year, in addition to birds, several of our trails had a lot of Evening Bats (Nycticeius humeralis) occupying the bluebird boxes. Flatwoods had so many, that we are installing three bat boxes on our bluebird trail. Most bat species are endangered, so we like to promote bat conservation whenever possible.

You might think that our job is over with the end of nesting season, but now our monitors have to prepare for the 2023 nesting season, which begins in March. They will all be busy with trail maintenance in the coming months. This includes repairing or adding new boxes, moving boxes to a better location and any other necessary changes.

I monitor Sargeant's Park and Flatwoods Park (assisted by Sherry Keller). Other monitors are Balm-Boyette's Nancy Eydmann, Hunter Green's Patricia O'Brien-Giglia, Lake Park's Joni Hartzler & husband Gary Krotz, and Lettuce Lake's Sherry Keller. 

In addition to our monitors, we have a wonderful group of volunteers, and very generous donors and sponsors who provide manpower and funding that enable our trails to be sustainable. 

Thanks from all of us at TAS for helping provide safe nesting sites for bluebirds and other native species. We look forward to another successful nesting season in 2023!


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