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Contents of bird nesting box

RosemarySRosemaryS Posts: 13
edited September 2018 in Wildlife gardening
I cleaned out our bird nesting box today and found this inside - see attached photo.
The blue tits used it frequently over the past couple of years and built up a thick, mossy nest, although without ever laying eggs. We have a small camera inside the box, so we can view the birds via the television. 
They left suddenly last year and I decided not to clean it out last autumn, rightly or wrongly.  This year there were no birds flying in on a regular basis.
Could this possibly be part of a wasps' nest?


Posts

  • RosemarySRosemaryS Posts: 13
    Thank you!

    Haha, the specs were for measurement only.....but it has been known to find 'lost' specs in the flower bed.  
  • Hostafan1Hostafan1 Posts: 34,889
    I was thinking:"how on earth did a blue tit manage to get those specs through the hole" 
    DUH.
    Devon.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Thought they might have belonged to this chap



    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Mark56Mark56 Posts: 1,653
    Looks like tree bumble bees to me

    https://youtu.be/wWgNwWIqKrE
  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 10,497
    I'd go with tree bumblebees as the most likely culprit too but it's definitely bumblebee larvae chambers. Were there any dead bees left in there? I've had a few in my nest boxes over the years and there's quite often a few dead worker bees left behind after the new queens leave.
    If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
  • RosemarySRosemaryS Posts: 13
    Yes, I have just found one.  Thanks for all the replies.
  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 10,497
    You may have already done this but if you put a handful of wood shavings in the box it helps to keep it clean and encourges birds to use it to roost over the winter. Turn your camera on after dark on a cold evening and you might see birds in there, assuming your camera sees in the dark.
    If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
  • RosemarySRosemaryS Posts: 13
    Yes, it does!  Thank you, I will try that. 
  • Mark56Mark56 Posts: 1,653
    :) 

    The tree bumbles finish around July so it’s all expected. I wish I had them here. 
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