Blue as a Perfect Day

Among my favorite birding experiences of the last decade are a series of spring trips we took to central Washington State to observe bluebirds. This region is on the dry side of the Cascade Mountains, and the habitat is Sagebrush and ranch lands at the higher elevations of the plateau, and groves of Ponderosa Pines at the lower elevations.

Along this route an Audubon Society chapter has placed over a hundred bluebird boxes--most of them occupied by bluebirds of two species. Western Bluebirds occupy boxes at the lower elevations, while Mountain Bluebirds (such as the one shown here) use boxes in the higher, more open lands. Where the two species overlap as the road rises out of the forest, we enjoyed the special experience of seeing the two species battling over rights to a nest box.

And the color! When the sun is directly behind you at the end of the day, the Mountain Bluebird glows with a blue intensity unparalleled in nature.

Lee Rentz