Mountain Bluebirds

Sialia currucoides

Mountain Bluebirds are small, bright sky-blue colored thrushes found primarily in Western North America. The males have light blue heads, backs and wings that are a darker blue, the bellies are pale blue and under the tail is white. The females are duller in coloration than the males.

West Desert Mountain Bluebird

By |2022-05-13T05:05:53-06:00May 13th, 2022|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It is always lovely to have a male Mountain Bluebird like this one I found in the West Desert in my viewfinder because they rival the color of the sky overhead.

Low Light Male Mountain Bluebird

By |2022-04-22T05:44:49-06:00April 22nd, 2022|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Scenics, Summit County, Trees, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Two days ago while I was high in the Wasatch Mountains this adult male Mountain Bluebird landed close enough for me to take photos of him.

Male Mountain Bluebird, Shadows And A Big Stick

By |2022-04-19T05:06:57-06:00April 19th, 2022|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I spent some time wandering in the West Desert yesterday morning and the only decent bird photos that I took were of this male Mountain Bluebird.

Male Mountain Bluebird Perched On Mullein

By |2021-06-18T05:50:56-06:00June 18th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I haven't had many bluebirds in my viewfinder this spring so when this adult male Mountain Bluebird perched on mullein showed up last week I was happy to photograph it.

Mountain Bluebird On The Aquarius Plateau

By |2024-03-15T06:58:52-06:00March 27th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Dixie National Forest, Mountain Bluebirds, Utah, Wayne County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I thought this male Mountain Bluebird photographed on the Aquarius Plateau in Wayne County, Utah positively glowed in the early morning light.

2020 Photographic Year In Review

By |2024-03-16T13:33:22-06:00December 31st, 2020|Categories: Bald Eagles, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Bushtits, Common Loons, Cooper’s Hawks, Desert Tarantulas, Eastern Kingbirds, Elk, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagles, Gray Catbirds, Great Blue Herons, Green Herons, Green-tailed Towhees, Merlins, Mountain Bluebirds, Nashville Warblers, Northern Harriers, Pine Siskins, Red Foxes, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Red-tailed Hawks, Ring-billed Gulls, Rusty Blackbirds, Short-eared Owls, Townsend's Solitaires, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, West Desert, Wild Turkeys, Wildflowers, Yellow Warblers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This is my 2020 photographic year in review. I'm selecting some of my favorite photos from 2020 and a few that just make me happy to see them.

Male Mountain Bluebird Glowing In Early Morning Light

By |2021-03-27T05:56:40-06:00October 8th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This male Mountain Bluebird seemed to glow in the early morning light which was in sharp contrast with the shadows on the mountains in the background.

Young Mountain Bluebirds In My Viewfinder

By |2021-06-18T05:07:08-06:00July 30th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I was happy to have these juvenile Mountain Bluebirds in my viewfinder yesterday and to be able to listen to their soft calls high on the sagebrush dotted hillside.

Female Mountain Bluebird With Prey

By |2021-03-27T17:11:07-06:00May 31st, 2020|Categories: Beaverhead County, Birds, Centennial Valley, Montana, Mountain Bluebirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

As I went through the images I took four years ago this photo of a female Mountain Bluebird perched on an old fence post with prey for her young in her bill stood out to me.

One Bad Mama Mountain Bluebird And Her Swiss Army Knife

By |2021-03-27T17:12:36-06:00May 6th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Imagine my surprise when through my viewfinder I could see that the female Mountain Bluebird had landed on a Swiss Army knife that was stuck into the bark of one of the trees.

Nesting Mountain Bluebirds And Other Woodland Birds

By |2024-02-26T09:52:54-07:00April 30th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Chipping Sparrows, House Wrens, Mountain Bluebirds, Yellow-rumped Warblers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday I had a blast photographing a pair of Mountain Bluebirds at a natural nesting cavity at the edge of a forest along with some other woodland birds. 

Juvenile Mountain Bluebird In The Wasatch Mountains

By |2021-03-27T17:16:14-06:00January 31st, 2020|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I can't imagine not seeing these beautiful Mountain Bluebirds feeding, breeding and raising their young in the mountains that are close to where I live.

Picture This: Utah Could Lose Our Mountain Bluebirds

By |2023-12-17T02:38:48-07:00August 12th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Clark County, Conservation, Environment, Idaho, Mountain Bluebirds, Summit County, Targhee National Forest, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Our current climate crisis could mean Utah might lose our Mountain Bluebirds and it is not just us, it is Idaho, California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming that will also be affected if action isn't taken now.

Fledgling Mountain Bluebird In Montana

By |2021-03-27T05:49:49-06:00April 12th, 2019|Categories: Beaverhead County, Birds, Centennial Valley, Montana, Mountain Bluebirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I dug through my older files and found this photo of a fledgling Mountain Bluebird perched on a wire fence that I photographed in July of 2017 up in Montana's Centennial Valley.

Focusing On Photographing Juvenile Mountain Bluebirds

By |2021-03-27T17:31:00-06:00June 20th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Luck was on my side when I found the family of Mountain Bluebirds in good light plus they were close enough to take quality photos of them, first the male then the female and the juveniles.

Female Mountain Bluebird From A Distance And Up Close

By |2021-03-27T17:27:52-06:00June 11th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Summit County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

After a bit the female Mountain Bluebird did something surprising... She flew in so close that I could only take close ups of her as she appeared to forage at the edge of the dirt road.

Mountain Bluebird On a Rustic Pine Fence – Life is Good

By |2021-03-27T17:34:33-06:00July 13th, 2017|Categories: Beaverhead County, Birds, Centennial Valley, Montana, Mountain Bluebirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Today's post is just a simple bird. A sky blue Mountain Bluebird perched on a rustic pine fence railing taken on a bright beautiful morning in the Centennial Valley of Montana.

Sapsuckers, Bluebirds and Nuthatches and the Magical Sapsucker Tree

By |2024-03-04T11:08:44-07:00May 3rd, 2017|Categories: Birds, Clark County, Idaho, Mountain Bluebirds, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Targhee National Forest, Williamson's Sapsuckers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Two years ago today I was in the Targhee National Forest of Clark County, Idaho photographing birds at what I called the "Magical Sapsucker Tree".

Tired of the Rain & Wishing for Bluebird Skies

By |2023-03-13T08:04:55-06:00April 27th, 2017|Categories: Birds, Burr Trail, Clark County, Idaho, Mountain Bluebirds, Targhee National Forest, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

The gray skies are getting old and I'm suffering from cabin fever and wishing for some bright bluebird skies to get out to photograph birds and to be able to relax and soak in nature.

Mountain Bluebird Plumage Development Stages

By |2022-04-19T04:36:07-06:00March 24th, 2016|Categories: Beaverhead County, Birds, Centennial Valley, Clark County, Idaho, Montana, Mountain Bluebirds, Targhee National Forest, Utah, Wayne County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

These images from different times of the year show Mountain Bluebird plumage development stages from not long after fledging to adulthood.

Black and Blue All Over With Just a Splash of Red

By |2021-04-06T18:57:10-06:00May 4th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Clark County, Idaho, Mountain Bluebirds, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Targhee National Forest|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

Well, it was another fun morning at the Magical Sapsucker Tree and today the cast was joined by a pair of Mountain Bluebirds who seem dead set on taking over the Northern Flicker cavity.

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