National Park College (NPC) received six bluebird boxes from the Garland County Audubon
Society (GCAS) for campus, hoping to attract and support the colorful songbirds.
The Audubon volunteers built the wooden boxes and installed them around the campus
on Feb. 16, with the help of biology professor Alex Barnard.
Eastern Bluebirds are cavity nesters, meaning they use existing holes in trees or
other structures to raise their young. However, their natural habitats have been reduced
by human development, and they also face competition from invasive species such as
European Starlings and House Sparrows.
To help the bluebirds survive and thrive, the GCAS has been putting up nest boxes
in suitable locations around Hot Springs, such as the Greenway Trail and both the
wastewater treatment facilities. The boxes are monitored and cleaned by the volunteers
after the breeding season each year.
The NPC campus is the latest site to receive the nest boxes, which are designed to
meet the bluebirds’ specific needs. Two of the boxes are placed near the new pollinator
garden outside the Lab Science building, where Barnard hopes the bluebirds will find
plenty of caterpillars to feed their chicks.
“Our hope is that the garden will provide abundant caterpillar larvae that bluebird
parents can feed their young. One bluebird was spotted during the box installation,
which was an encouraging sign,” explained Barnard.
