The Maryland Bluebird Societys

BLUEBIRD CHATTER
Winter 2015

EABL
by

Isabelle Pardew,
Maryland Bluebird Society member
As a junior in high school and within the realm of my work
as a volunteer for the Hampton National Historic Site, I
have discovered a newfound fascination with the Eastern
Bluebird. I have always loved bird watching, but I never
realized just how much of an impact "Project Nest Watch"
really would have on me.
Following the health of the Eastern Bluebird population at
Hampton National Historic Site while collecting and
monitoring the data is quite interesting. I was even able to
use my new binoculars to verify the presence of any EABL
within the vicinity of the boxes that I managed. Working
with Ranger Bill Curtis as my mentor, I had ten boxes that
were part of my route, and I visited them every 3 or 4 days
from April 15 to September 15. After about one hour of
checking and visiting the boxes, I recorded the data in a
small notebook and then transferred that information onto
my log sheets. Finally, I turned my worksheets in monthly
to Ranger Curtis.
Before my volunteer work at the Hampton Mansion,
whenever I was out birding I would focus on finding hawks
and owls. I never really concentrated on the "little
common" guys, such as the EABL. Project Nest Watch has
taught me that all birds are truly amazing. Since being
involved in this project, I really have fallen for the beautiful,
amazing EABL. And, as the picture below demonstrates,
there is no comparison to the beautiful eastern bluebird!

MBS Bluebird Chatter

Page 1

The Presidents Perch by Kathy Kremnitzer

th

2014 was a great year for MBS. We celebrated our 10

Anniversary and were busy with events throughout the year. By the
looks of things, 2015 will be an equally fun year! If you visit the
Events page of our web site (www.mdbluebirdsociety.org ), you will
see that it has recently been updated and weve even added a few
items that have not been listed in the past. In March, there are
presentations being given by Board members at the Hagerstown
Flower and Garden Show, the Davidsonville Green Expo and at the
Wild Birds Unlimited store in Gambrills. The Bluebird Society of
Pennsylvania is holding its annual conference the last weekend of
th
nd
March and MBS plans to attend. On April 4 and August 22 , the
Board of Directors will be holding Board meetings at Black Hill
Regional Park. We encourage members to drop in and see what its
all about.
th
On May 17 , MBS will co-host the Bluebirds Forever Festival at
Black Hill Regional Park. This is our biggest event of the year and we
all look forward to spending the day celebrating bluebirds and other
native cavity-nesting birds. With storytelling, arts and crafts, trail
walks and informative presentations, theres something for everyone.
This is a free event and is a perfect way to spend a family afternoon,
so mark your calendars! Please come by and introduce yourself to
those staffing the MBS table, visit a bluebird nestbox or two with
MBS Secretary Bonnie Bell, and take in one (or all) of our
presentations!
MBS will be attending the Catoctin Creek Nature Fest in Frederick
County in April, Heritage Days in Montgomery County in June, the
Montgomery County Farm Tour in July and the Harvest Festival in
Montgomery County in October. My favorite event of the year is our
Annual Membership meeting and Picnic in September. The afternoon
is filled with bluebird-loving folks sitting around and talking about
bluebirds, bluebirds and more bluebirds. We have a silent auction,
share bluebird stories, a hot dog or two and touch base with both old
and new friends. I hope you will give this event a try, knowing that all
are welcome! This event always reinforces for me that bluebird
people are pretty amazing folks!
I have no doubt that more items will be added to our Events page
as the year goes on. I hope you will see something that appeals to
you and come out to say hi. Though we may not have met yet, I can
tell were going to be great friends-after all, we love bluebirds!

MBS Helps Mary Janetatos

by

MBS Director, Anne Sturm

On March 31, 2014, MBS Director Anne Sturm came home

to a message from Mary Janetatos, the first Executive
Director of NABS who dedicated her home and her life to the
North American Bluebird Society. The message said This is
Mary Janetatos. I am living at the Little Sisters of the Poor
and guess what? I saw bluebirds! I hope you can help me get
some bluebird boxes. Anne wrote fellow MBS Directors
Stan Fisher, Ed Escalante, and Kathy Kremnitzer and asked if
the Society could deliver two nestboxes and erect them on
the campus of the Little Sisters of the Poor located in
Washington, DC. Of course, Stan, Ed and Kathy were
enthusiastic. Mary was thrilled and we arranged a date- to
put the boxes up on Thursday, April 17 th. Ed built two
beautiful traditional nestboxes and Stan put together a pole
and predator guard system for each.
April 17th arrived in all her spring beauty and Stan, Ed, and
Anne drove to downtown D.C. to meet Mary and a friend of
hers who volunteers at the Little Sisters of the Poor. The
habitat was a bit more woodsy than we traditionally think of
as good bluebird habitat but they were optimistic and excited
when Ed saw a Pileated Woodpecker. Ed and Stan worked
hard at mounting the two boxes and Anne and Mary caught
up on all things bluebird.
On April 21st, Anne came home to two voicemails from
Mary. She said a male and a female bluebird were on one of
the nestboxes and I know my bluebirds! She was thrilled!
The second voicemail thanked Ed, Stan and Anne for
bringing the nestboxes and mounting them so beautifully.
What a happy Earth Day!

MBS Members:
Please check with MBS Treasurer
Diane Seward trina65@verizon.net to
be certain you are current with your
membership. You can renew using
the form at the end of this newsletter
or online at
www.mdbluebirdsociety.org
If you know of someone who is
interested in bluebirds, please feel
free to pass this newsletter on to
them.

Ed Escalante, Stan Fisher, Mary Janetatos and Anne Sturm

installing a nestbox at Little Sisters of the Poor in Washington
D.C.
Photo by Ed Escalante

Anne checked in with Mary and the volunteer several times

this nesting season. The Eastern Bluebird is still being seen
on the grounds and wrens have enjoyed one of the nestboxes.
For those wanting to know more about Mary Janetatos, you
can find her article, The History of the North American
Bluebird Society at the NABS History tab on the home page
of
the
North
American
Bluebird
Society
at
www.nabluebirdsociety.org .

MBS Officers and Directors for

2015
Officers
President: Kathy Kremnitzer
Vice President: Stan Fisher
Secretary: Bonnie Bell
Treasurer: Diane Seward
Directors
Fawzi Emad
Anne Sturm
David Gillum
Jodi Hewitt
Bill Roberts

MBS Bluebird Chatter

Page 2

Ed Escalante
Matt Storms
Michael L. Smith
Jenny Hendershot

Bluebird Trail at Hampton National Historic Site

Hampton National Historic Site in Towson, Maryland is a sixtyfour acre site that preserves and interprets a large agricultural and
industrial estate. The centerpiece of the park is the Mansion,
possibly the largest house in America at the time of its completion
in 1790. The Mansion is furnished with thousands of original
collection objects and furnishings. South of the Mansion are
spectacular terraced gardens. The view to the north reveals a
beautiful meadow with farm buildings in the distance. A Family
Cemetery, outbuildings, stables, slave quarters, and farm buildings
are placed throughout the landscape.
It's a remarkable place and well worth a visit. The primary
purpose of the park is to preserve and interpret the historic
landscape, as much as possible, to enable visitors to walk into a
space and see and feel the past. However, that presented us with a
challenge--how could we install bluebird boxes without unduly
interfering with the historic landscape? And how could we keep the
cost down to just about free?
To reduce costs we have relied on our talented volunteer crew.
Three volunteers built the boxes, and another volunteer does most of
the monitoring. We recycled lumber from an old exhibit to make the
boxes. Total cost to the taxpayer--a few nails. To minimize the
visual intrusion, we decided to use unpainted wood for the boxes.
Whenever possible we mounted them on existing poles, such as
fence posts or boundary markers. We realize that this makes the
birds easier prey, but so far in our monitoring we have not noticed
unusually high losses. If we do, we will reconsider our program.

Nestbox mounted on a wooden fencepost at Hampton National

Historic Site in Towson. The Mansion is visible in the
background.
Photo by Bill Curtis, Park Ranger

Yellow Jackets Outfoxed

by Ed Escalante
I mow around my bluebird boxes to reduce the chances of
picking up deer ticks from high grass. The last time I mowed, I
ran my push mower over a nest of yellow jackets, and they
didnt like it. Fortunately, they went after the mower, and I
was only stung a couple of times. After they calmed down, I
retrieved my mower, and left the area.

We do have some boxes on metal poles with predator baffles.

Those boxes are in locations where they are largely out of sight, so
they do not interfere with the historic views. Interestingly enough,
those boxes do not have higher success rates than the lessobtrusively mounted boxes.
To maximize the results of our efforts, we do monitor the boxes
twice a week throughout the season and submit our data to Project
NestWatch which is run by the Cornell lab of Ornithology. We
started our program in 2013. The trail has ten boxes, though we
hope to add two more this spring. In 2013 and 2014 we fledged 77
birds, 47 of which were Eastern Bluebirds. None of the others were
House Sparrows.
We're looking forward to two things--the 2015 nesting season
and Eastern Screech Owl boxes....
William Curtis
Park Ranger
Hampton National Historic Site

Two weeks later, I returned, ready to do battle with the wasps.

I approached the area, looking for flying wasps, but was
surprised by their absence. As I got closer, I realized that the
wasp nest had been excavated, and the combs were scattered
on the ground beside the hole. A few wasps were still trying to
care for eggs that remained in the combs. Beside the hole was
fox scat. It appears that the fox excavated the nest, removed
the combs, and ate the contents. A Google search shows that
fox have been seen excavating a yellow jacket nest, and eating
the combs. Im amazed.

MBS Bluebird Chatter

Page 3

MBS Bluebird Chatter

Page 4

Nesting News From Around the State

Janice Ward reports the following results from the trails she helps to
monitor on the Eastern Shore:
Nassawango Creek (34 Boxes): 112 bluebirds fledged
Cedartown Trail (15 Boxes): 66 bluebirds fledged
Hope Memorial Trail (11 boxes): 31 bluebirds fledged
Totals for 2014: 20 9 bluebirds fledged from 60 boxes
2013 totals were 215 bluebirds fledged from 54 boxes

Montgomery County resident, Susan Moran, has monitored her

32-box Three Sisters Road trail for 46 years and reports the
following results for the 2014 nesting season:
140 bluebirds, 2 Carolina Wrens, 4 house wrens and 30 tree
swallows. Susan noted that predation by black snakes and house
sparrows was down this year, and house wren activity was less than
in years past.

Jenny Hendershot fledged 104 bluebirds and 51 tree swallows from 29

boxes on her trail in Washington County. Jenny has also posted some
beautiful photographs on the MBS Facebook page. Thanks, Jenny!

MBS Secretary Bonnie Bell monitors 16 nestboxes near Great

Seneca Creek in Montgomery County. She reports that 41
bluebirds, 29 tree swallows, 16 house wrens and 2 chickadees
fledged this year. Some of the other wildlife she enjoyed watching
while checking the nestboxes were two nests of Canada Geese,
numerous red fox & deer sightings and beautiful wildflowers such
as Spring Beauties, Trout Lilies, Butterfly Weed and Partridge Pea.
Rolling logs, she also found many Red-backed Salamanders.

Matt Storms 12-nestbox trail in Baltimore County fledged 30

bluebirds and 4 tree swallows in 2014.
Ed Escalante filed the following report from Montgomery County for
2014:
Little Bennett Regional Park (32 boxes)
109 bluebirds, 53 tree swallows
See an 18 year accounting of bluebird and tree swallow fledgings from
Eds trail on page 4 of this newsletter.
Jodi Hewitt of Carroll County fledged 9 bluebirds in 2014, but her
nesting season was not without drama! The first nesting went like
clockwork, with the first egg appearing on 4/9 and the 5th on 4/22.
Hatching occurred on 5/10-5/11 and the young fledged on 5/26.
The second nesting began with nest building on 6/8 and the first egg
appeared on 6/13. Jodi left for vacation on 6/14 and when she returned
there were no eggs in the nest. She suspected house wren predation but
wasnt sure. A new egg appeared on 6/24 and the 5th of the new clutch
was laid on 6/28. 4 out of 5 eggs hatched on 7/10 and the young fledged
on 7/27. The female bluebird disappeared shortly after the young fledged
and the male took over.
Dave Gillum reports fledging the following from his trail at the
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Anne Arundel County:
SERC (50 Boxes): 105 bluebirds, 19 chickadees and 5 tree swallows
Kathy Kremnitzer reports fledging 154 bluebirds and 121 tree swallows
from the 49 nestboxes she monitors in Frederick and Washington
Counties. Two male bluebirds were lost to house sparrow attack on the
trail in Brunswick and vandalism damaged nestboxes on two other trails.
The Yellow Springs trail experienced moderate success even though
there was a construction project taking place there for most of the
summer.
MBS Treasurer Diane Seward reports fledging 39 bluebirds, 17
chickadees and 3 tree swallows from her Montgomery County trail in
2014.
Tricia Smucker monitors 20 nestboxes in Frederick County. She
reports 80 bluebirds and 48 tree swallows in 2014.
MBS Kent County Coordinator Karen Unruh was thrilled when the
bluebirds found her nestbox on the Eastern Shore this year. After some
hassles with house sparrows, the bluebird pair successfully fledged 3
young.

MBS Vice President Stan Fisher of Montgomery County fledged

the following from his trails:
Model Airplane Park(7 Boxes): 18 bluebirds
Bluebird Hill (12 Boxes): 13 bluebirds
Stellas Dream (70 Boxes): 70 bluebirds
Four Streams G. Course (20 Boxes): 82 bluebirds
MBS Board member Anne Sturm monitored the Stellas Dream
and Four Streams trails along with Stan. Additionally, Anne reports
the following results from Montgomery County:
Linden Farm (10 Paired Boxes): 38 bluebirds, and 25 tree swallows
fledged. 5 bluebird young died in the nest and 4 bluebird eggs did
not hatch.
Mark and Jean Raabe have report yet another successful nesting
season at Antietam National Battlefield Bluebird Trail in
Washington County. Their 100 nestboxes fledged 388 bluebirds
in 2014, bringing the total fledged from the trail since 1979 to 9,658
bluebirds! It also fledged 93 tree swallows in 2014.
Though they consider 2014 a successful nesting season, a cold
winter combined with a late spring delayed nesting activity. In their
experience, early successful nesting sets a favorable trend and also
leaves time for possible third nestings.
Joe Adams reports 67 bluebirds fledged from his farm in
Frederick County.
Bill Curtis, Park Ranger at Hampton National Historic Site in
Towson, reports the following results from the trails 10 nestboxes:
22 bluebirds fledged, 11 tree swallows fledged and 5 house wrens
fledged.

If your nesting data is not shown here, please share it

with us by e-mailing it to griffin459@myactv.net It
will appear in our next issue.

MBS Bluebird Chatter

Page 5

The Count-down Begins: Getting Ready for Nesting Season

by Kathy Kremnitzer
This time of year, most bluebird landlords are doing some serious calendar watching as we try to estimate exactly
how much more winter weather we will have to endure before our beloved blue friends get down to the business of
nesting. While we wait, however, we can be putting these cold, dreary days to good use. Here is a list of tasks that
will not only pass the time; they will also help us to get a leg up on nesting season 2015!
Visit each nestbox to check for the following:

Splitting or rotting wood (replace as necessary)

Loose or rusted screws, nuts and bolts (tighten screws, nuts and bolts, replace rusted ones)
Check pole for damage and stability
Check predator baffle/assembly for effectiveness, replace worn or rusted parts
As weather permits, waterproof/caulk/paint
Wait until nesting behavior begins before cleaning out boxes-roosting birds sometimes bring insulating
materials into the box to help keep them warm

Organize Monitoring Information and Tools:

Obtain new monitoring notebook or update with new data recording sheets
Update/confirm contact information for park personnel (if your trail is located on park land)
Update/confirm emergency rehabilitator information and keep this information readily available in
your monitoring notebook
Note contact information for one or two trail monitors in your area in case of emergency
Organize your monitoring kit with the following items:
screwdrivers
pliers (regular and needle-nosed)
hammer
Duct tape
various-sized screws
nuts and bolts
Vaseline or ivory soap scraper or spatula
trash bags
gallon-sized baggies
scissors
permanent marker
in-box sparrow traps large mesh laundry bag w/drawstring disposable gloves
dust mask
sunscreen
flashlight
mechanics mirror
entrance hole reducers
plastic spoon
small first aid kit (or antibacterial wipes and band aids, at least)

You are probably wondering why you need Vaseline or ivory soap and what could you possibly do with a plastic
spoon. Seasoned bluebird monitors know that if you apply Vaseline (in a thin coat) or ivory soap on the underside of
the roof and on the upper inch of the inside walls of a nestbox, then paper wasps cannot adhere their nests and thus
will not be infesting your nestboxes! I apply Vaseline with a small paint brush and then buff with a paper towel.
The plastic spoon is in case you need to remove eggs (or dead young) from the nest. If you have to handle
unhatched bird eggs, please remember that egg shells are not only delicate but are also porous. This means that any
bacteria or substance on your hands can penetrate the shell and cause harm the developing embryo. A plastic spoon
keeps your hands from coming into contact with the eggs. Dust masks are vital when removing a used nest
(especially tree swallow nests-tree swallows are NOT the best housekeepers). The mask will keep you from
breathing the detritus from the used nest into your lungs. One of the most-used items in my kit (and car) is a
container of antibacterial hand wipes. When used between nest checks, they help to prevent transference of germs
and bacteria from nest to nest and from a nest to your steering wheel!

MBS Bluebird Chatter

Page 6

Maryland Bluebird Societys County Coordinators

MBSs County Coordinator Program is an important aspect of what our society is all about,
helping bluebirders throughout the state when troubles arise. These volunteers accept phone
calls and e-mails and are ready to assist with information and resources on the spur of the
moment. Do you need help figuring out how to set up your nestbox? Maybe you have an
abandoned nesting and dont know why.
Perhaps house sparrows are plaguing your
neighborhood and you dont know what to do. Well, an MBS County Coordinator is always
willing to listen and share whatever knowledge and experience they can with you.
Anne Arundel and
Queen Annes Counties
Dave Gillum
410 266-8775
dagmapper@verizon.net

Frederick County
Kathy Kremnitzer
H 301 662-7818
C 301 676-9371
griffin459@myactv.net

Baltimore County
Matt Storms
H 410 686-2089
C 410 952-4019
bigmattblue@gmail.com

Harford County
Pam Ford
H 410 569-2205
C 443 617-5556
jpford@comcast.net

Carroll County
Jodi Hewitt
H 410 848-6154
C 410 303-7266
jshewitt24@gmail.com

Kathy Kreyling
410 557-8097
mybluebirdstudio@gmail.com

Carroll County and

Howard County
Felicia Lovelett
H 410 489 -7169
C 301 801-1969
flovelett@verizon.net
Cecil County
Maryanne Dolan
410 398-7567
maryanne.dolan@gmail.com
Charles County and
Prince Georges County
Jacalyn Thomas
301 203-5553
j-rthomas@mindspring.com

Kent County
Karen Unruh
410 404-0155
karenunruh007@gmail.com
Montgomery County
Ed Escalante
301 972-3241
escalante@his.com
Washington County
Jenny Hendershot
C 301 491-8823
djbmhendershot@aol.com
Worcester, Somerset and
Wicomico Counties
Janice Ward
H 410 632-0671
C 443 614-8318
Jward43.jw@gmail.com

If you do not see your county in the above listing it is because we do not have a
volunteer from your county. Please contact us if you would like to serve as County
Coordinator from your area of our beautiful state.
MBS Bluebird Chatter
Page 7

THE MARYLAND BLUEBIRD SOCIETY, INC.

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION
Mail to: Maryland Bluebird Society
10809 Rock Run Drive
Potomac, MD 20854
Instructions:

Print and complete this application and mail to the above address. Please
remember to enclose your check payable to the Maryland Bluebird Society.
Memberships and donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

[ ] New Application [ ] Renewal Application

Note: Membership is effective for the calendar year (s) in which the dues are
paid, except that dues paid in the fourth calendar quarter are effective for the
year in which they are paid. Please check the appropriate membership category:

Individual

] One year - $10.00

] Three years - $25.00

Household

] One year - $15.00

] Three years - $40.00

Lifetime:

] Individual - $250.00

Student age 23 or under

Corporate/non-profit

[ ] Household - $300.00

] One year - $7.00

[ ] One year - $30.00

[
[

] Three years - $20.00

] Three years - $85.00

] Corporate sponsor (non-voting) One year - $100.00

] Make a tax deductible donation, amount $_______________

Please print:
Name: __________________________________________________
Address: ________________________________________________
________________________________________________
E-Mail Address: __________________________________________
Telephone No.: [

] home

] cell

] work

________________________