Part of the purpose of the education offered by Lititz Christian School (LCS), 501 W. Lincoln Ave., Lititz, is to prepare students to "impact their world for Christ." To teach students to take on this challenge, LCS recently began offering a community service class for students in grades five through eight in the late fall of 2020. As part of that class, this spring, under the supervision of substitute teacher Ron Whiting, the students took on the challenge of constructing and waterproofing 14 bluebird houses, which they placed strategically along the Warwick-to-Ephrata Rail Trail. The project involved utilizing skills in mechanics, math, and engineering.
Whiting, who has experience overseeing similar projects, explained that bluebird houses are specially designed for the nesting habits of the birds. "Bluebird houses have an entrance hole 1 and one-quarter inches in diameter, and the door has a hinge so that it can be opened in order to collect information about the nest success and to clean out the nest after each clutch leaves," explained Whiting, who pointed out that bluebirds may lay two clutches of eggs in a breeding season. He added that it is important to remove the first nest because bluebirds will build a second nest on top of their first nest. "That could cause an unsafe situation as a baby bird could fall out of the entrance hole before it's ready to fly," said Whiting.
Whiting connected with representatives of Warwick Township for help with the project, and he reported that the organization was easy to work with. "(They were) helpful in supplying us with signposts that Warwick Township public works superintendent Jason Minnich cut and powder coated for our project," said Whiting, adding that he emailed the township office and was quickly directed to Minnich for help and guidance.
Eighth-grade students accompanied Whiting to place the boxes along the rail trail. "The Warwick-to-Ephrata Rail Trail is an excellent habitat for bluebirds," noted Whiting, who added that the birds prefer to sit in mature trees bordering grassy fields where they can watch for their next meal and then swoop down and grab insects out of the grass.
In addition to placing the birdhouses, LCS students will eventually return to the nests to collect data and report their findings to the Nest Watch Program at Cornell University. "We probably won't be collecting any data this year, since we put up the birdhouses rather late in the nesting season," said Whiting, who said it generally takes a few weeks for birds to acclimate to the nest boxes. "Next year, however, I hope to take students to visit the birdhouses to collect data on any nests we find ... (such as the ) number of eggs or young and habitat."
An extra 20 birdhouses were constructed as a school fundraiser, and these are available for the public to purchase for a nominal donation. Readers who would like to purchase birdhouses may email nicole.hurst@lcstaff.net for more information. Those who would like to know more about the school may visit http://www.lititzchristian.net.
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