Blue Birds

Blue Birds are only found in North America. They belong to the Thrush family Turdidae, and are related to the American Robin. These birds are divided into three species: Eastern Bluebirds, Western Bluebirds and Mountain Bluebirds. These birds have distinctive blue or blue-and-red plumage. Females are similar in color to males, except their plumage looks a little duller than males’. There is no great difference in size between sexes either.

The Eastern Blue Bird is common in the southeast of Canada and in the east of the USA. The Western Blue Bird is found along the west coast of the North American continent. The Mountain Blue Bird resides in the uplands, and its range overlaps those of the other two species. Mountain Blue Birds are very easy to distinguish; they are completely blue, while the other species have red breasts. The Mountain Blue Bird is a little larger than the East and the West Blue Birds.

Blue Birds are territorial. They reside in open meadows or in small groves and prefer to nest in cavities. These birds usually brood several times over spring and summer. Male Bluebirds tend to use an interesting manner of attracting females. Not only do they perform courtship dances, but choose nesting sites themselves and play paramount role in building nests. This behavior is termed “Nest Demonstration Display”, and it proves effective in attracting females. Females bring 3-5 eggs on the average. It takes several months for young to grow up and gain independence.

Blue Birds are exposed to attacks by many predators. They also have to withstand tough competition with other birds for food and territory. With deforestation continuing, they are losing much of their natural habitat, and their numbers have dropped significantly in the 20th century.  However, by the 1990s the Blue Bird has regained much of its position, probably due to Bluebird nestbox activity, which is increasingly popular today. Blue Birds produce characteristic warbling and chattering sounds, which attracts many bird lovers.

If you have a soft spot in your heart for this bird and would like to attract a Blue Bird you can place a Blue Bird box near your home. The box should be fixed in a secure place and in such a way as to exclude attacks by snakes, raccoons and cats. There are dozens of web sites dedicated to Blue Bird watching, where you can read countless articles about Blue Birds and find out something about nestbox installation.