Have a blue tit nest with 11 babies- parents have been excellent since born 3 days ago- come home today checked camera as not seen parents- very little movement but blue bottles in nest- would magpi have killed the parents or have both just abandoned them
Very sad outcome for your nest Lesley, quite possible one or both adults predated or maybe scared away from nest, hard to say if Magpies to blame but they do prey on chicks, eggs and smaller birds . laws of nature that they too have young to feed
2013 photos & vids here
eff37 on Flickr
Is it OK to clean nest out today and if so what do I use ? Thankyou for replying x
Hi Lesley, so sorry to hear about the blue tits; unfortunately you cannot legally clean out nest boxes during breeding season so would have to leave it until September/October before you do that. Here's what I copied for you from website regarding the cleaning out of nest boxes: I used to clean our nest boxes out first week of October. Hopefully you will have other fledglings to see in your garden. Good luck,
After the end of each breeding season, all nestboxes should be taken down, old nesting materials removed, and the box should be scalded with boiling water to kill any parasites. Do not use insecticides or flea-powders – boiling water is adequate. Annual cleaning should only be carried out at the end of the breeding season, from late September to February.
Under the terms of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, if unhatched eggs are found in the box, they can only legally be removed from October to January inclusive, and they must be destroyed – it is illegal to keep them.
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Regards, Hazel