Why should YOU care about the Mountain Bluebird?

Klee, Paul, Blue-Bird-Pumpkin, 1939, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Sialia Currucoides species of bluebird, also known as the Mountain Bluebird has been used as a subject matter in art for centuries. Rockwell Kent painted Baby with Blue Bird, (1918)with oil on glass. One year later Kent created a wood engraving titled Blue Bird(1919).Paul Klee has drawn the Mountain Bluebird in his artwork Blue-Bird-Pumpkin (1939). Additionally, George Braque has produced many prints of birds including Blue bird (1962). The males have a distinct sky-blue color all over that is usually darker on their wings and tail. The females are a grayish-brown color with hints of pale blue on their wings and tail. Males will search for nesting spots, but females are responsible for choosing a spot and building the nest. Mountain Bluebirds tend to live in open areas that contain a mixture of short grasses, shrubs and trees in North America. In San Diego county they can be found in places such as the grasslands of Ramona or in dry lake beds near Lake Cuyamaca from November to mid March. Mountain Bluebirds are not endangered, but populations are declining in areas where urban sprawl has reduced the accessibility to appropriate nesting sites.

These organizations are working towards the conservation of Mountain Bluebirds:

1. North American Bluebird Society, http://www.nabluebirdsociety.org/

2. Texas Bluebird Society, https://www.texasbluebirdsociety.org/

3. Southern California Bluebird Club, https://bluebirdssc.wordpress.com/

4. The Cavity Conservation Initiative, http://cavityconservation.com/