 Blue in Flight - Bluebirds in Maine - During Winter!
Eastern Bluebird. All photos in this issue are courtesy of the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service National Digital Library.
Two Eastern Bluebirds have been showing up with a flock of goldfinches to feed on shelled sunflower seeds that I scatter on my Mother's front porch benches. When I first spotted them, I doubted my identification, grabbed a field guide and gasped, "They should not be here now!" And, most field guides echo this on their maps. But, Eastern Bluebirds have been over-wintering in the southern regions of Maine for many years. Although Maine Audubon's Christmas Bird Count records show them overwintering near my Mom's home, this winter has been my first sighting of them!
- Maine Audubon has a great online article, Bluebirds in Maine's Winter, that includes Christmas Bird Count data since 1997, eBird status, and a "How to Help" section.
- Cornell's All About Birds Eastern Bluebird page includes great audio of calls and songs, photos, and information. Their map is yet to be updated to show Eastern Bluebirds year-round in southern Maine, but as numbers increase it will be.
Activities for Children and the Young at Heart
- Learn about Eastern Bluebirds and share your most favorite of facts learned with your friends and family.
- Find out if you live close to where Eastern Bluebirds are overwintering. Look at the Overwintering in Maine map by Maine Audubon. (Be sure to scroll 1/2-way down the article.)
- Make a list of what Eastern Bluebirds eat. Do you like to eat any of these same foods? Why or why not? Does your yard or a nearby park naturally provide any of these foods?
- Build a Bluebird Nest Box. Eastern Bluebirds nest throughout Maine during the summer months. As cavity nesters that cannot make their own cavities (called secondary-cavity nesters) they rely on the holes made in trees by other birds. These holes can be hard to come by because people usually cut down dead trees, even when they are not at risk of damaging a structure when they eventually fall. Placement of the nest box is very important - instructions are included on the linked page under the box building directions.
- Mark you calendar now to join the Maine's Christmas Bird Count. To learn about and join counts in other states see the Audubon Christmas Bird Count page.
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