Measurements
Both Sexes
- Length
- 6.3–7.9 in
16–20 cm - Weight
- 1.1 oz
30 g
Other Names
- Merlebleu azuré (French)
- Azulejo pálido (Spanish)
Cool Facts
- Most studies of the Mountain Bluebird involve birds in nest boxes. Little is known about natural nest site requirements.
- Only the female builds the nest. The male sometimes acts as if he is helping, but he either brings no nest material or he drops it on the way.
- Mountain and Western bluebirds compete for nest boxes, and may exclude each other from their territories. In the small area where they overlap, the Mountain Bluebird dominates the Eastern Bluebird. This relationship may limit the westward expansion of the Eastern Bluebird.
- The Mountain Bluebird often occurs outside its normal range in winter. Individuals are casually recorded in western and northern Alaska, and in the midwestern and eastern states.
Habitat
Open Woodland
Found in agricultural areas and prairie-forest edge with groves of trees, short grass, and few shrubs.
Food
Insects
Insects, small fruits.
Nesting
Nesting Facts
- Clutch Size
- 4–8 eggs
- Egg Description
- Pale blue and unmarked, sometimes white
- Condition at Hatching
- Naked and helpless with some patches of down.
Nest Description
Nest in cavities in trees and snags, and frequently in nest boxes. Nest woven of grasses, lined with fine grass, soft bark, hair, or feathers.
Nest Placement
Cavity
Behavior
Flycatching
Hunts from perches and drops onto ground to catch prey. Frequently hovers and drops down on prey on ground. Some flycatching and gleaning.
Conservation
Least Concern
Benefits from many human activities; populations stable or increasing.
Credits
- Power, H. W., and M. P. Lombardo. 1996. Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides). In The Birds of North America, No. 222 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.