Juvenile Mountain Bluebird in Montana – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 640, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light
Last month and this month I wrote about Mountain Bluebirds in several posts that included images of adult males and females, today I am posting one image of the many fledglings I saw last week. The Mountain Bluebirds did well this season in Beaverhead County judging from all of the young that I saw. They are pretty little birds.
This juvenile Mountain Bluebird happened to be perched on a lichen-covered fence railing that had tons of character and texture.
I was delighted to see so many post-breeding flocks of adults and fledglings this trip. Last year the Mountain Bluebirds didn’t do so well because of a very late cold snap and snow in the valley.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to view more of my Mountain Bluebird photos plus facts and information about this species.
So glad for all of the successful youngsters! I have two conflicting feelings when I see juveniles or fledglings: 1) I adore seeing them, with their yellow gapes and sometimes awkward and funny movements along the learning curve; and 2) I worry for them and cross my fingers (tightly) that they all fledge and fly safely and well!
Ingrid, I worry for the fledglings too. Fortunately there isn’t much farming going on in the Centennial Valley the land is used mostly for grazing so those new chemicals aren’t affecting the insects; a big part of their diet, like they are in other parts of the country. I also adore seeing them 🙂
The pair that nests in my garage soffit raised 5 young this year and it was so fun seeing Dad out training the youngsters for weeks after they fledged.
I bet it was fun seeing dad training the youngsters!
It’s so cool to see the transitional stages of the mountain bluebird . Wonderful Portrait Mia !
Thanks John, I’m so glad we have Mountain Bluebirds in our lives!
ohh, he s cute, and there a touch of blue on the wings, very nice
thanks mia, have a nice day ☺
Thanks Eric, I hope you have had a wonderful day.
such a sweet picture.. just what I needed after losing interwebs connectivity for a few hours today.. 🙂 thank you!
What a beauty Mia.
Thanks so much Bob!
Mia: I’m so happy that both the Eastern and Western Bluebirds are in a “LC” status at the IUCN! I don’t think this has to do with any Sparrow ‘control’ methods, but because of the diligence of concerned citizens and legendary figures like ‘The Bluebird Man’; all have contributed to its stability. This makes me so happy. It means there’s room for all on this beautiful planet!
Maria, I know that the bluebird boxes that this young bird came from are monitored and although I haven’t seen any House Sparrows in that area at all I do see European Starlings. I don’t know if the Starling nests are removed or not by the people monitoring them.
But I am very happy that there were so many young that fledged this year.
What a beautiful shot of this precious little bird! I love the soft, almost pastel colors.
Thanks Lynn, they are beautiful
What a cute, pretty little bird! I wish I could see the flash of blue on the wing that must show when they fly. I love the soft colors, the almost dappled spots and the tiny touch of yellow in the corner of the beak.
Thanks Patty, I wish you could see the flashes of blue when these birds are on the wing too, they are gorgeous little things with wings!