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Should I intervene?

Helen D
09/05/2014 01:44
We have a pair of Bluetits who have returned again to a bird box in our garden. They nested there last year, however sadly, after a few days of feeding the chicks, we noticed an unpleasant smell coming from the bird box. A few days later we realised that the pair had stopped going in and out of the box and were nowhere to be seen. We opened the roof and discovered 3 dead chicks and 1 unhatched egg. The pair have been busy feeding this year's chicks for nearly a week now, but once again we can smell the same unpleasant odour! Should we intervene and open the roof or leave well alone? It's heartbreaking to think it's going to happen all over again! I would be really grateful for any advice please?
  • 0 09/05/2014 02:02 in reply to doggie

    Hello Alan, many thanks for your reply.

    So it's not unusual for all the chicks to die then? How sad.

    Do you think the nesting box has anything to do with it? It is a wooden box with a slate roof. We did think that they might have died last year due to a really hot spell in the weather - too warm for them inside perhaps? Would it have been an idea to drill some ventilation holes in the box?

  • 0 09/05/2014 02:34 in reply to doggie

    It's on the garden fence and I would say it's facing north-west. Possibly getting too much sun on one side in the afternoon?

    Do you think some ventilation holes would be of benefit for next year? Replace the slate roof with a wooden one?