Bluebirds of Happiness
In response to my grousing (heh) about the springtime nestbuilding onslaught of trailertrash birds in our patio, regular commenter Brian has provided photographic evidence of a kinder, gentler birding experience, straight from his Ohio backyard. I'll let him set the context for the following photos, which he gave me permission to post for your enjoyment:
I don't have any photos of them from this year, but I'm sending you some from last year. This year's female is using more pine needles than grass in the nest. The bluebirds are really a joy to have around. We feed them a few mealworms at dawn and dusk - they hang around our tree waiting on us each time. They are very docile - not aggressive toward us at all, even while nesting. They'll let you approach to within 10 or 15 feet before they take off. No wonder they are such easy targets for the evil house sparrows. (I'm convinced that the birds in Michele Catalano's dream were house sparrows in disguise.) I am amazed at how destructive those things are.
A bluebird egg
A brood of three young bluebirds just before their first flight
Brian adds that these are "Eastern Bluebirds." Apparently, they are recognizable by their lack of a drawl.
I have to admit that these are very cute examples of the avian persuasion, and they're surely better behaved than the sparrowists (or wrens or finches or goldfarbs or whatever they are) that are usurping our property rights. But I'm still not convinced that I'd want them living behind my Bose.
Thanks for sharing the great photos, Brian!
Posted by: jasmine at March 30, 2005 09:58 PM"Apparently, they are recognizable by their lack of a drawl."
That's just the best! Brian took some very nice photos, btw.
Michele would really love the feathered little darlings around here. Mockingbirds can't tell the difference between light from streetlamps and daylight, so they sing allllll night long.
I'm sort of surprised that mockingbirds range that far north; I've always thought of them as southern region birds. They are, of course, the state bird of Texas (which doesn't stop them, of course, from occasionally being royal pains-in-the-rear).
Posted by: Eric at March 31, 2005 06:40 AMWe have a regular mocking bird visitor, too, Mr. Freen. He's fun to watch, but the bluebirds find him intimidating, so we have to shoo him away before he eats the whole pile of worms. Then we have to shoo him again. And again... He's quite persistent. ...but much more timid around the humans than the bluebirds are, so it works out. He's welcome to join in, but not to hog the whole meal.
This year's bluebird nest appears to be complete this morning. We're expecting the first egg any day now!
I'm glad you enjoy the photos.
Posted by: Brian at March 31, 2005 07:00 AMAbout the publisher
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We saw Western bluebirds in Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado. At least a local said that's what they were. They had more black markings and sharper features. (No, they weren't blue jays.) I was surprised to see they were ground feeders. They were delightful. It's been a number of years ago. it brought back memories of the Eastern bluebirds I'd often seen in Wisconsin as a teenager. Occasionally, I've viewed them in my in-law's Oklahoma backyard. They were my MIL's favorite bird.
Posted by: jasmine at March 30, 2005 09:56 PM