• Replies 3 replies
  • Subscribers 92 subscribers
  • Views 844 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Latest posts

Advice for Blue tits

Quidditch23
18/01/2021 20:21

I am seeking advice on what to do with a pair of blue tits that nested in my garden last spring. I live in a built up residential area, and I have a concrete garden/patio. We have some potted shrubs and a clematis but lots of concrete otherwise. We have houses all around us and a alley way behind our garden wall. There was an old bird box on our house when we moved in, and never really took notice of it until last spring where i watched blue tits build inside and nest there. They had 2 fledglings. It was extremely stressful for me as i know how many cats are around, and go through our garden daily (despite my various attempts to dissuade them). Our neighbours have a cat that uses our garden as a pathway to home. When the tits fledged, i woke up at 4am for 3 days to watch through the window for any cats. I literally sat there and waited, and would take it in turns with my partner. The fledglings were hopping around our garden for a few days which was very stressful and broke my heart! I hope they made it.
Anyway, I decided right then and there, that by the end of the year i would take the box down so as not to go through that again next spring. We took it down in December.
I now see the tits coming back and looking for it - which absolutely breaks my heart and now i am questioning my decision (we threw it in the bin too as it was so old). I see that tits stay within there territory and I feel like I now think I would almost rather them nest here so at least i can help give them the best chance for survival by watching out for cats - because will they nest around here anyway? I’m very torn on what to do, and would like some advice.

  • 19/01/2021 13:37
    We are bird lovers and saddened by your story regarding your pair of blue tits. We’ve had three successful years of seeing blue tits rear their young, from the bird box on the wall of our house. Although there are cats in the neighbourhood, they are prevented from entering our garden by the very effective methods we use. The key to attracting blue tits to your garden are bird feeding tables and nesting boxes, suitably positioned. We see that you do not have any trees. However, this can be remedied by buying a buddleia plant. It grows very quickly and birds, especially blue tits love them. The buddleia is a sauce of shelter and food for birds and helps protect their young from cats. Good luck and we wish you many years of enjoying beautiful blue tits and their fledglings.
  • 21/01/2021 12:02
    Thank you - so would you recommend that I do put a bird box back up to let them breed in? Even though there are so many cats around and only a few trees? Will they breed locally anyway, and perhaps I give them the best chance by doing what I can? Or do you think they will find somewhere else more easily and maybe less cats are around? Thanks so much for replying!
  • 22/01/2021 11:53
    Blues tend to survey lots of places when choosing where to nest so don't worry that you had taken the box down and good to replace the box anyway if it was really old as they can be susceptible to disease. If they had chosen it before to nest in, they obviously thought there was everything they needed nearby, and helpful to have a food and water source on hand to keep the parent's energy up. We've got a camera in our box and had great tits nest in there the last few years, it has been both a delight and a trauma, there was a runt of the litter last year that took the leap of faith out the box when they others did, but his wings had barely formed so he couldn't fly at all, he just hid in the garden for ages, cheeping at his parents to bring him food! Is there any way you can gently repel the cat from the garden?