Bluebird Egg Robber

by Terry Weiss
(Niles, MI, USA)

I was sitting in our back yard watching the bluebird house when what I thought was the female sticking her head through the hole.

I thought, "Great! I get to watch the female." But, no. The bird turned out to be larger and grey.

A couple days later, my wife and I opened the box and found four eggs. We were very pleased.

However, yesterday I found three eggs on the ground, one broken, the others whole. The nest was empty, causing us to feel bad. I looked around for the fourth egg, but couldn't find it.

I'm guessing that a nest robber did the deed. We named them Paddy and Katie. Katie doesn't come down for mealworms, but Paddy gorges himself on them.

He comes when I call the two of them. -- I'm wondering, of course, what species of bird was the culprit. -- Bluebirds nest three times, but I don't think the two of them will follow through.

Terry Weiss
Niles, MI