Bluebird Trails

Buchanan County Bird Club Bluebird Trails

The Eastern Bluebird, a cavity nester, was in trouble in the early 1900's. The invasion of the competing, aggressive species of European Starlings and House Sparrows as well as the increase in house cat numbers and the use of pesticides made it very difficult for Eastern Bluebirds to raise young. Their numbers took a drastic drop. Eastern Bluebirds were in danger of extinction. In the 1940's bird clubs, Boy Scout troops and other groups began establishing bluebird trails to help them. The bluebirds began to make a comeback.

The Buchanan County Bird Club established its first bluebird trail on Compton Mountain with 25 nest boxes in 2002. In the spring of 2003 a trail of 20 boxes was established on Happy Hollow in the Breaks Community.

A third trail of 20 boxes was established at Keen Mountain Park in 2004 and dedicated as the Early White Bluebird Trail.

The boxes are monitored by club members during nesting season each week from April to the end of August. Nesting data is collected from each box about the number of eggs laid, the number of young hatched and the number of birds fledged (left the nest). At the end of the season this data is turned over to Roger Mayhorn, the Buchanan County Virginia Bluebird Coordinator. He compiles the data and sends a report to the Virginia Bluebird Society, who in turn compiles that data with data from other bluebird trails in Virginia and sends it on to the North American Bluebird Society. This is done to keep and eye on the Bluebird populations to see how they are faring.

Below are the combined totals for our three Bluebird Trails in Buchanan County.

Birds Fledged 2002 - 2016

Eastern Bluebirds 2,527

Tree Swallows 783

Carolina Chickadees 196

House Wrens 17

Tufted Titmice 15

Total Birds Fledged 3,538

Thanks to Daryl Owens, Roger & Lynda Mayhorn and David Raines, the current monitors of our 3 bluebird trails in Buchanan County.

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