Sighting details
Location
near Williamstown, New Jersey

Geobirds Local >>

rarityHouse Sparrows (3)
Seen by sarah
When May 14, 2008 at 18:25
Details COMMON (LARGE NUMBERS)
Notes
Weather

Comments 

user sarah, May 14 2008
Very upsetting day!! :( I had titmice nesting in my bluebird box. They had just laid and were incubating their eggs. Today a House Sparrow destroyed every last egg and chased the titmice off. }:( They had built a beautiful nest too!! :**( I'm SOO upset.....I was monitering the nest, and even tried scaring off the sparrow, but no go. Now I have to deal with the sparrows and decide what I'm going to do about them...
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user jim macgregor, May 15 2008
-I know how you feel! -I remember my bean- shooter days when it was me and the Tree Swallows against the House Sparrows! HA!Unfortunately, the Sparrows were able to stay on the battlefield every minute of the day. -I solved the Chickadee/ Sparrow problem with a 1 1/8" hole, however, I believe the Sparrow and Titmouse are about the same size.
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user jim macgregor, May 15 2008
-another competitor that can cause havoc in backyard nests is the secretive little House Wren; they are nice to have around but the male will sometimes fill up multiple backyard nestboxes with twigs, hoping that the female will choose one; they too, will also remove eggs from nests and scatter nest material over the ground. Oh, the wonderful world of birds!
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user sarah, May 15 2008
Why can't they just get along!! :-/ The titmice have stayed around, and are looking in their box again...the house sparrows are there too...what a mess!!! So far no trouble with wrens....they don't seem to like my bird houses! :) Those sparrows weren't intimidated by me at all!!! They sure have nerve! But what can you do.......
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user TawnyOwl15, May 15 2008
I have the perfect solution: Build Barred Owl nestboxes! ;). I used to sit outside by the Purple Martin house, trying to chase off the sparrow invaders. I also put out a bluebird nest box. It didn't attract bluebirds, but I did get a pair of Eurasian Tree Sparrows. Can't miss with the Barred Owl nest boxes, though! P.S. "Oh, the wonderful world of birds"--Very well put, Jim!
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user sarah, May 16 2008
You mean the owls will keep away the sparrows? Will I have problems with starlings nesting in the owl houses though?
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user TawnyOwl15, May 17 2008
The owls with frighten the sparrows, and possibly get a few meals out of them. The Starlings wont nest in the houses. Usually, the Barred Owls will move in pretty quickly, because there are few good nesting sites. Usually, owls look for large woodpecker holes, or rotten trees. When they can't find those, they always go to the boxes! It's a wonderful thing to have wild owls nesting in your backyard!!!
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user sarah, May 18 2008
Thanks for the idea!!! I'll have to look into it! That would really take care of the sparrows!! :)
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user jim macgregor, May 18 2008
-remember too, that Mother Nature has a way of looking after shifts in population; as the House Sparrow population increases in your area, their predator species numbers will also increase and you are likely to see more Coopers, Sharpies and Merlins. Perhaps the family of Titmouses that were lost, were part of an overabundance of that species in the area; the parents though, are still around and have the opportunity to attempt to raise another family. :)
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user sarah, May 20 2008
We do have a LOT of titmice!!! :) They're always everywhere!!! Lately I've also noticed a lot more House sparrows than I've ever seen around here before! It's interesting that you'd comment though, because I've also had a steady house guest this year......a Coopers Hawk. :)
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