Lynnhaven is for the Bluebirds!

Photo Top: TOP Kevin ('23), Yaquae ('24), Aiden ('27) - BOTTOM Tori ('23), Nate ('23) installed bluebird boxes last week around the campus. The school received a grant through the Virginia Bluebird Society to for the boxes and Lynnhaven campus will now be a stop on the Virginia Bluebird Trail. Mr. Chase and students will be responsible for monitoring the boxes each week and reporting the data to the state.

Lynnhaven School has partnered with the Virginia Bluebird Society to place six nest boxes on the campus. The nest boxes were officially put up on February 24th and have been monitored weekly by Mr. Chase. Monitoring the nest boxes weekly is a crucial task in the name of citizen science. All of the data collected is reported to the Virginia Bluebird Society, which is then reported to the state to track the trending population of bluebirds in Virginia.  

Bluebirds are cavity nesting birds, which means they build their nests, lay their eggs, and raise their young inside sheltered chambers or “cavities”. The preferred habitat for bluebirds is open fields containing low grass, with plenty of areas to perch on to spot insects on the ground. Due to their incredible eyesight, they can see insects on the ground from over 100 feet away! Not only are they absolutely beautiful to look at, they also eat a variety of pesky insects including beetles, spiders, mosquitos, and most importantly, ticks.

​Lynnhaven uses the Carl Little Bluebird Box design. It includes a large overhanging roof for sun and rain protection as well as venting on both sides so the box doesn't overheat. The cylindrical piece below is a snake guard to protect nestlings from snakes that attempt to get into the box. The ventilation openings are there prevent overheating and are visible near the top of the box. The grooves at the front of the box are used for the fledglings to exit the box when they are ready to leave the nest. To date, there are currently two nests being built in our nest boxes by Bluebirds. Bluebirds start nesting at the beginning of March and it stretches throughout the summer through August.