Welcome to a bird lover's paradise!

In the autumn of 2006 we were contemplating purchasing this property and decided to have the house inspected prior to putting in an offer. That was the day that was imprinted in our minds and will never be forgotten ....

As our hybrid Camry turned onto the driveway it startled a great blue heron. The heron took flight and guided us up the long driveway until we came to the bottom of the hill. The heron flew into the marsh and we continued up to the house. Imagine driving behind the 6-7 foot wingspan of such a majestic bird!
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Spring is an exciting time of year as birds return to build nests. Some of the birds that have nested here are Eastern bluebirds, Tree swallows, Yellow-throated vireos, Killdeer, Eastern Phoebes, Eastern Wood Peewees, Great-crested flycatchers, Least flycatchers, American Redstarts, Sandhill cranes, Baltimore orioles, Ruby-throated hummingbirds, Grey Catbirds, Brown thrashers, Rose-breasted grosbeaks, Virginia rails, Soras, American and Least bitterns, Purple Martins, Cedar Waxwings, Indigo buntings ......... the list is endless. See https://pbase.com/snorkelady/birds_that_nest_on_the_property for a list of birds that have nested here.
We are not serious 'listers' nor are we 'experienced' birders but we have been able to identify 150 species of birds since we've been here. Each year adds a *new* bird to our list.

There are 12 Eastern bluebird/Tree swallow houses, 4 House wren boxes, 4 Wood duck boxes, 1-4 compartment Purple Martin house, and a Bat house. There are bats in the summer and it's reassuring that they can eat ~ 1000 mosquitoes a night. The bats come out at dusk and forage the bugs in the front yard, about an hour later they head into the marsh for the night.

Our routine is to clean, repair and put the bird houses back up in the autumn. Spring maintenance requires checking for over-wintering critters. Greasing the poles with vaseline, and rubbing a bar of ivory soap within the interior to discourage wasps from building nests.

We usually can tell that wasps are a problem when the adult perches at the opening ducking its head in and out, reluctant to go inside and feed the nestlings.

Maintaining bird houses requires vigilant monitoring .... something we knew nothing about prior to 2006.