Numbers are in for Aiken's bluebird trails

Trail coordinators Ron Brenneman and Roger Brock have completed the annual report on Aiken's seven bluebird trails for 2009.

A total of 154 bluebirds were fledged in the trail's nesting boxes this year, making a total of 759 fledglings born on the trails since the bluebird trail project began eight years ago, according to Brock.

The nesting boxes also fledged 288 birds of other species during the year, including 171 Carolina chickadees, 62 tufted titmice, 29 Carolina wrens, four white-breasted nuthatches and 22 brown-headed nuthatches.

"Aiken Outdoors is inactive as an organization, but the trails are still being maintained by volunteers," Brock said. "We felt a commitment to keep going with the bluebird trails. This year we went over the 750 mark, which is what we were hoping."

Aiken is home to the Arbutus Hills trail with 13 nesting boxes, the Lyman Meadows trail with eight boxes, the Blackberry Hill trail with 13 boxes, the Town Creek Baptist Church trail with seven boxes, the St. Paul Lutheran Church trail with four boxes, the Steeplechase Track trail with 21 boxes and Schofield Middle School's trail with five boxes. The school's 4-F Wildlife Club maintains and monitors the Schofield Middle trail.

The bluebird trail project began in response to the decrease in species population across North America, a response to two factors - loss of habitat and the encroachment of the house sparrow and European starling, imported species which compete for habitat and resources with the bluebird.

Wild berry growth has also been down in recent years; bluebirds depend on berries to get them through winters.

For more information on the bluebird trails or to volunteer, call Brenneman at Birds & Butterflies at 649-7999.

Contact Suzanne Stone at sstone@aikenstandard.com.