Dan,

If you want keep some boxes vacant for bluebirds, place to boxes on the same
pole. Since VG Swallows are territorial, they will only utilize one box and
leave the other open for the bluebirds.

Scott



At 01:00 PM 5/12/96 -0700, you wrote:
>A few years ago we saw 4 or 5 Western Bluebirds on our property in October.
>I promptly put up 4 "bluebird" houses along the fenceline where we saw them,
>hoping they would stop and nest the next spring. We haven't seen any more
>bluebirds, but the houses are occupied each year by tree swallows.
>Yesterday my 8 yo son and I were censusing the boxes. Three had swallows
>on and around them, but no eggs. The fourth had 2 very angry swallows, and
>as we approached, a cowbird flew out of the box. We peeked inside--there
>were 4 swallow eggs and one cowbird egg. This was at about 1:00 pm.
> Also, just saw my first yard lister Nashville Warbler--number 80 for our
>forested 12 acre yard (no marsh or water).
>
>Dan Logen
>Stanwood, Wa
>pdl at whidbey.net
>
>
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Scott Ray Washington Birder Newsletter
Yakima, WA PO Box 191
email: scray at wolfenet.com Moxee, WA 98908
http://www.wolfenet.com/~scray/
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