I had a tragedy in my backyard a few days ago that reminded me on a mini scale of the devastating tornado disaster in Oklahoma. Something (probably a curious young bear) came through my yard and destroyed two houses. One was vacant; the other was occupied by a pair of bluebirds and their three little pre-born baby birds. At first I thought the vandalizer might be a raccoon, but the screws attaching the houses to the poles were bent and the houses took a real beating. Besides, a raccoon would likely have eaten the eggs, but whatever committed the vandalism left two uneaten broken eggs and one intact egg on the ground. It was senseless destruction and mayhem -- sort of like the tornado.
So why does this remind me of Oklahoma, a disaster on a grand scale? Because as soon as we replaced the house with a new bluebird box, the parents came back to rebuild. They are going in and out of the box even as I write this, presumably making a new nest.
