Tag Archive | Mountain Bluebird

Welcome Back Mountain Bluebirds!

By Cathy Warwick

Mountain Bluebird
Mountain Bluebird, photographed by Carole Steeves, Carburn Park, Calgary, 21 March 2024.

The Mountain Bluebirds are back in Calgary and surrounding areas! The “Friends of Fish Creek” birders saw five at Carburn Park on March 21st. The Bluebirds appear to arrive faithfully on the Spring Equinox every year. This picture Carole Steeves took of a Mountain Bluebird sort of sums it up. Imagine you fly all night from the Southern States and, exhausted, you land in Calgary only to be greeted by a cold wind and snow covering all the food. Perhaps I am projecting my own “snow-fatigue” onto this bird in the picture. Hang in there little guy, things will turn around soon. And then it will get bad again, and then better again… this is Calgary after all.

This cold Bluebird is probably stuck eating seeds and old berries it finds. When the weather gets warmer it will switch to its main food source – insects. According to Audobon.com, it especially likes caterpillars, beetles and grasshoppers. Maybe that’s why it makes its home in the open fields around Southern Alberta, a lot of bugs. 

Mountain Bluebird
Male Mountain Bluebird. Photo NPS/Patrick Myers from Wikimedia Commons.

Years ago my family traveled up to the Ellis Bird Farm near Lacombe expecting to see a flock of Mountain Bluebirds in the spring. It was there that I learned that the bluebirds are very territorial while breeding and, according to their fact sheet, need to nest about 2-3 acres apart. That is why the nest boxes are put on what is called a ‘Mountain Bluebird Trail’. There are many such trails in Alberta and the efforts of volunteers building and monitoring nesting boxes can be read about all over the internet. It’s fun to slowly drive down a Bluebird trail. If you’re lucky you will see the unmistakable bright blue of a Male Mountain Bluebird. They are like a piece of the summer sky come to life. If you see a bird pop out of the nest that is more navy blue with a bright white chest then is probably a Tree Swallow that has taken a nest box.

Mountain Bluebird
Male Mountain Bluebird at nest box, SW of Calgary, May 2011. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

Like the Blue Jay the blue comes from the structure of the feathers and the way it refracts the light. There is no actual blue pigment in the Mountain Bluebirds feathers. This is probably one of the more irritating facts that you can tell a beginner birder – “That bird isn’t really blue you know.” Birders already have a nerdy reputation so let’s use this fact sparingly. It’s interesting though, this bird really is sky blue, as the sky is also just refracted blue wavelengths.

Mountain Bluebird
A pair of courting Mountain Bluebirds near Madden, north of Calgary, May 25, 2018. The male has just brought food to the female. Photo by Vincent Tolley.

The Mountain Bluebirds are in a hot competition for nesting cavities. They fight Tree Swallows, House Sparrows, other Mountain Bluebirds and worst of all – the European Starling. Yes, these aren’t your blue birds of song, flitting around Cinderella and landing on available shoulders. Reading about them on the internet the adjective “aggressive” comes up a lot. The Mountain Bluebirds are tough fighters scraping out a living. Needless to say, their population numbers fluctuate and although they are currently listed as ‘Least Concern’ their peak in population was in the 1940’s. According to the Nature Conservancy of Canada they have decreased by approximately 26 per cent between 1966 and 2014. Their scrappy, fighting spirit will be needed, as well as the help from the nest box volunteers.

Tree Swallow
This one is a male Tree Swallow. You will see more Tree Swallows than Mountain Bluebirds on the Bluebird Trails. Calgary, 2008, Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

Here is a link to the Calgary Area NestBox Monitors Society

Note: In addition to a number of migrating Mountain Bluebirds that have been seen along the Bow River in the past two weeks, there was a pair of Western Bluebirds seen at Carburn Park up until March 30. This species is rarely seen in Alberta, and this is likely the first sighting ever in the city.

More about Mountain Bluebirds at All About Birds.

Courting Mountain Bluebirds

Vincent Tolley photographed this Mountain Bluebird pair just after the male had brought a meal to the female.

Mountain Bluebird

Mountain Bluebirds near Madden, north of Calgary, May 25, 2018. Photo by Vincent Tolley.

You can find Mountain Bluebirds at their nestboxes along rural roads all over the Calgary region this month. The best areas are NW, West and SW of town. Many of the boxes host Tree Swallows but if you are persistent you can find bluebirds.

On Thursday June 28 you can join Nature Calgary as Don Stiles leads a trip along his Bluebird Nestbox trail. See baby Mountain Bluebirds and Tree Swallows and learn about the nestbox program. For more information see this page.

You can see more of Vincent Tolley’s photos on his Flickr page.

Mountain Bluebirds on Migration

Tony LePrieur saw a flock of ten Migrating Mountain Bluebirds in the Weaselhead Nature Area in SW Calgary on April 1, 2018. All photos by Tony LePrieur.

Mountain Bluebird

Male Mountain Bluebird.

Mountain Bluebird

Six males together.

Mountain Bluebird

A female. Most of the earliest-arriving birds are males, eager to get on territory.

Mountain Bluebirds arrive back in the Calgary area every spring just about right on the equinox. The extended snowy and cold weather we are having this spring will make it tough on them. They eat mostly insects during the breeding season, but will also eat berries to survive the cold weather.

Mountain Bluebird

Mountain Bluebird

Mountain Bluebirds are a cavity-nesting species, and they are now often out-competed for nesting sites by non-native House Sparrows and European Starlings. In an effort to increase the nesting opportunities for Bluebirds, volunteers have erected hundreds of nest boxes in rural Alberta.

See the Mountain Bluebird Trails Conservation Society website.

You can see more of Tony LePrieur’s photos on his Flickr page.

Battling Bluebirds

Tony LePrieur photographed these two male Mountain Bluebirds having a bit of a tussle near Priddis, SW of Calgary, on April 8.

Mountain Bluebirds (males), near Priddis, April 8, 2017. Photo by Tony LePrieur.

The birds may have been battling over a good territory. Many bluebirds are back in the area now, but some of the females have not yet returned. Primarily an insect-eater, Mountain Bluebirds can get into real trouble when we get heavy snowfalls (like we’re having tonight), especially if it stays cold for an extended period. They will also eat berries.

One bluebird gets the upper hand!

The victorious male. Both birds were OK, but only one gets the territory.

Sunday Showcase: Baby Birds, Summer Adults

Photos taken by Tony LePrieur on the weekend of June 26, 2016, at Fish Creek park and Bridlewood Wetlands in Calgary, at Frank lake, and in the Priddis area. There are lots of juvenile birds being fed out there right now!

image1

Male Red-winged Blackbird feeding juvenile.

image2

American Coot babies.

image3

Yellow-headed Blackbird feeding juvenile.

image4

Cedar Waxwing.

image5

Gray Catbird.

image7

Willet in an unusual spot.

image8

Eastern Phoebe.

image9

Mallard with ducklings.

image10

Hungry Juvenile Red-winged Blackbird.

image11

Adult Black Terns.

image12

Female Mountain Bluebird with nesting material – raising a second brood?

image13

Male Mountain Bluebird.

Lafarge Meadows – Spring has arrived!…?

Posted by Dan Arndt

March 20th, 2014 was the first day of spring. The Google Earth image that I’m using for this week’s map was from March 28, 2004, and seems to show much more open water on the Bow River, a bit of open water on both ponds at the park on the east side of the Bow River. It just goes to show how much colder, snowier, and icier this year has been (and continues to be!) than last.

Lafarge Meadows  March 23, 2014

Lafarge Meadows
March 23, 2014

Of course no visit to Lafarge Meadows and Sikome Lake is ever complete without a visit to the resident Great Horned Owls. With Dad on watch and Mom on the nest, it looks like they’re off to another good start this year. In fact, it won’t be too long now until the young start to poke their heads up and explore their new environment!

male Great Horned Owl Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/640sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 500

male Great Horned Owl
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/640sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 500

female Great Horned Owl Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 800

female Great Horned Owl
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 800

After a few weeks of them being more or less absent on the river, the Canada Goose numbers were back up as migrants began their trip north to their breeding grounds once again. This particular stretch of river is rather good for finding birds staging before their trek further north, or to disperse around the countryside near Calgary.

Canada Goose Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 800

Canada Goose
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 800

Canada Geese in flight Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 800

Canada Geese in flight
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 800

We were even lucky enough to see a (seemingly) early Mountain Bluebird along the river. While we only saw it at a distance, it was more than enough to be certain of the ID. Chances are good that this bird is finding enough to eat along the edge of the river with the various insects that are still present in the water, as well as egg sacs, larvae, and various other food sources near the banks of the river.

Canada Goose Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 200

Canada Goose
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 200

We ventured quite far south at Lafarge Meadows in hopes of finding some other birds a little bit closer to the water’s edge, but didn’t get anything much more interesting than the Mountain Bluebird until we headed back the other way. It all seemed to come fast and busy, with this adult Bald Eagle landing very close by to start, followed quickly by the sighting of some American Wigeon across the river, and then finding our first Killdeer of the season in amongst them!

Bald Eagle Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 400

Bald Eagle
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 400

American Wigeon and Killdeer Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 500

American Wigeon and Killdeer
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 500

Our last “new” birds of the day was a fly-by of a fairly sizeable flock of California Gulls, two of which flew by quite low, allowing for a much better view (and photos) than we had the previous week at Pearce Estate Park!

California Gulls Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm 1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 160

California Gulls
Pentax K-5 + Sigma 150-500@500mm
1/1000sec., ƒ/6.3, ISO 160

While I didn’t get too many good shots last week, I guarantee you’ll enjoy the ones I was able to capture this week. See you next Monday, and until then, good birding!

May Species Count – Longview Area

One of the areas that I surveyed for the May Species Count on Sunday May 29 was the Longview area, an hour SW of Calgary.  I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to get to some of the best birding spots due to the wet weather, but the conditions were pretty good.  There was water flowing across some of the side roads but I did get through.

This creek was very high…

There was still quite a bit of snow at high elevations…

The Bar U Ranch road, looking west to the mountains…

I managed to find 75 species, which is a good total for that territory.  I was quite frustrated near the end of the day by my inability to find a House Sparrow anywhere in the town of Longview!  No House Finches there either.  I also saw about 35 Black Terns in a pond that was just out of my territory, and they refused to come over to a perfectly good pond on my side of the boundary.

But I did have some unexpected birds as well, including two Red-breasted Mergansers.  Here are some other highlights (as usual, you can click on the photos to enlarge them).

Mountain Bluebirds are commonly seen near the bluebird boxes…

Female Mountain Bluebird…

Tree Swallows are nesting in many of the Bluebird boxes…

I got a good look at this Red-eyed Vireo…

Male Red-naped Sapsucker…

Because of the high water, there were few shorebirds other than Spotted Sandpipers and a few of these Wilson’s Snipe…

I was pleasantly surprised to find a pair of Harlequin Ducks on the Highwood River at the Green View campground…

I only saw one pair of Green-winged Teal, but this male swam very close to me…

The final surprise of the day was this beautiful Red Fox, which seemed to be completely unconcerned with my presence, and walked right by me…

Posted by Bob Lefebvre