Requesting KBS Bluebird Boxes - School Bluebird Trails
To receive up to five free bluebird boxes and additional needed items to establish a school bluebird trail, please review the following and confirm with a statement that the following guidelines have or can be met with your request for participation. KBS welcomes and encourages your school’s participation!
1. Check the general area where you plan to place your boxes for bluebird habitat. Bluebirds prefer open grassy areas for nesting. Most Kentucky school campuses have this habitat. Bluebirds do not normally do well in a city environment or in a forest lacking open grassy areas.
2. There should be at least 100 yards distance between each box.
3. Bluebird boxes should be inspected and managed weekly when possible during the nesting season (March – August). Weekly inspections are not required.
4. Boxes should be inspected at least once per year for maintenance needs and appropriate box repair made by the school/students. Bluebird boxes in bad condition can be harmful to bluebirds. If the boxes cannot be repaired, they should be removed from bluebird habitat before the nesting season.
5. A simple nest report should be completed during box inspections. A nesting summary for the nesting season, including all bluebird boxes in the project, should be mailed to KBS, PO Box 3425, Paducah, KY 42002 following the nesting season. All needed forms are available at the KBS web site for printing.
The above project is simple to do. Students love tracking bluebird-nesting activities, counting eggs, bluebird babies, etc. It is easy to adapt and incorporate the bluebird project for many grade levels. Topics such as measuring distance between boxes, determining percent nesting success, writing skills, bird identification, wildlife laws, art, geography (bluebird range) and more can be included in student hands-on activities.
The above five guidelines will need requester’s confirmation before boxes are shipped to your school. Please provide a name and shipping address for the project leader. If habitat is available for four boxes, request only four boxes. KBS prefers to send five boxes if there is adequate habitat available to support five boxes. A minimum of five boxes properly placed and managed is required for the school to name and register a school bluebird trail as part of the “Trans-KY Bluebird Trail (TKBT)” project. Schools registering a TKBT receive a framed certificate of registration following the placement of five boxes. Schools are invited to name and register their trail incorporating the name of their school in the trail name if possible.
Many Kentucky schools are finding that student interests in their school studies are greatly improved when incorporating bluebirds into an outdoor classroom experience. KBS wishes the best success to all our schools, teachers, students and bluebirds and pledges KBS support.
Ed Ray, KBS Education Director, e-mail: edrayosprey@yahoo.com for more information.