Bluebirds On The Move

On a day much like today in Atlanta - sunny, low 70s, light wind - I was hiking one of the small ridges that sits astride the North and South Carolina line near Charlotte. Climbing out of one of the steep ravines and reaching the highest point on the trail, I was surrounded suddenly by thousands of bluebirds moving through the woods and brush. The show continued for twenty minutes as wave after chattering wave passed by. In the 45 years since that encounter, only one event compares with it: seeing about a dozen bald eagles in a small tree next to a convenience store parking lot in Anchorage. We were leaving for a tour and some of the folks wanted to stop for snacks before we left town. As we pulled into the parking lot, someone asked, "Hey, are those bald eagles?" The driver, a local who saw eagles as often as most of us see sparrows, responded with, "Yeah, happens all the time here." Amazing.

We do have bald eagles flying over our ridge but today we have a happening of a different sort. 

After a three or four month absence bluebirds returned to our woods today. There is a resident population here in Georgia but woodland is not a preferred habitat so we don't see them in winter. On the other hand there is a large migrant population and they're starting to move but many of them don't move far.  It's a sure sign of a changing season. Again this year we have several small snags in the rear woods that opens on a pasture. It will make excellent housing for any of those birds seeking to set up housekeeping. If we're lucky, they will be closer to the patio and provide us with hours of entertainment in both song and behavior. Here's an observation I made in 2009 when a pair of bluebirds decided to inspect the housing potential in our woods:

This pair spent an hour scoping out apartments in a small dead tree trunk about 50 feet from my patio. First, the male would inspect the premises, then look inquiringly toward the female in a nearby branch. After a few minutes, he would fly to a neutral branch; she would inspect, then fly to her neutral branch. They would meet to discuss on yet another branch, then repeat the cycle. Again. And again. The setting sun made it hard to follow their house hunting and soon they disappeared over our ridge. Will the rising sun lead them to return and make a home in our tree? I don't recall if the pair actually moved in. The snag they inspected fell a few years ago. Still plenty of apartments waiting for young families though.

Regardless, I hope we get some tenants soon. If they're here early enough they can raise three broods in a single season.