Hope Airport April 6 Mountain Bluebirds

[wendy]

Went to the airport today and found the lovely mountain bluebirds right away (lucky!). They were on the Airport Road side on the western quarter of the field. I counted about 20 on the ground - a mix of adults and younger ones. It was raining lightly and cold but they were busy as ever plucking worms out of the ground. At one point the rain really starting coming down and about 15 of them flew into a small tree close to me. That's when I think I spotted a Say's Phoebe in the tree with them. Nothing I did seemed to spook them, even when I moved my vehicle to be closer to them, and to sit on the roof of my jeep to settle in for some quality viewing time. A loud truck went by and they didn't even move. They just stayed close to the fence side and many of them seemed to come closer to check me out. (My kingdom for a good camera.) Last year I watched them sit on the dirt mounds and fly up to catch bugs. This time they were perched on the leafless plants that were sticking up 5" to 45" above the ground or they were just on the ground. Their electric blue feathers glowed like they'd been coated in a powdered blue pigment. There was one male that had the most incredible blue coat. The younger ones are adorable and some still looked fluffy - could have been puffed up from the cold. One of the best moments was when a bunch of them seemed to look to the east and then they flew up and gathered in a flock. I hadn't realized there were so many but when they were in the air I could count 30+....maybe 40! Then they flew into one of the big evergreens along the fence. Shortly after, they went back to the same area on the field. I got there about 3:45 and stayed for about 45 minutes. I didn't want to leave but it was cold and pouring rain. A couple of towhees and a song sparrow were hanging out nearby - they asked to be mentioned.

[Dave]

Wow, incredible numbers wendy! That is the first that I have heard of numbers that large.

Thanks for sharing and I am glad you enjoyed the birds.

[murraybrown]

Wendy, congratulations on setting a new record for bluebirds at the airport!
It seems those birds must have recently arrived sometime after I left. I rolled out around 11:00 and there were only two birds present at that time.
Do you think the one different bird could have been a Western? They look quite a bit darker than the Mountain's.
The fact that it was perched with the others makes me doubt that it was a Phoebe. They have quite different habits.
Good report!

[martin]

Great write up, I enjoyed the read.

It is nice to watch the birds. I spend too much time looking thru the lens sometimes trying to get a shot and forget to watch and take it in.

[wendy]

Hmmm, Murray, I don't rightly know! But, I couldn't see any blue on it.
I'm just trying to remember... I think a Say's was hanging out there with the small group of mountains last year. Do they not go to trees? If only they wore name tags. I've gotten rusty during the winter.

[Chris]

Great report Wendy! Fantastic numbers of bluebirds as well.

I wonder if this weather is holding them back? We have had large numbers of bluebirds on a few occasions so far this year.

[murraybrown]

Wendy, the Say's Phoebe is a flycatcher and the bluebirds are thrushes. as such, their habits are quite different. All phoebes tend to prefer man-made objects such as fences, corrals, sheds and even houses. Whereas the thrushes prefer more natural perches and habitats. I'm speaking in general terms here as there are always exceptions to the rule.
When I saw the phoebe up there last week it was fly-catching from the eaves of one of the houses along the road.

the female Western Bluebird is a fairly dark bird with rusty underparts not unlike a Say's Phoebe. So it would be easy to mistake one for the other.
Lots of fun and lots more on the way!

[ian]

Nice report Wendy! Great to see such huge numbers.
I have included a couple of photos from my trip to the airport that had me thinking about the possibility that i had captured a Say's Phoebe but on closer examination I am assuming female MB. These might illustrate the confusion.

[Chris]

Ian, that isn't a Say's Phoebe. I checked my guide and it states that female Mountain Bluebirds have no orange on the breast and Western Bluebirds do. I think that female Westerns have brighter orange than that this time of year though. It's either a female Mountain or Western Bluebird.