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Description
The Eastern Bluebird is a blue bird with a
rusty red breast; appears round shouldered when
perched. The female bird is duller than male
bird; young bird is speckeld breasted, greyish,
devoid of red but always with some telltale
blue in wings and tail.
The State Bird
Of: Missouri and New
York
Size: 7” (18 cm)
Voice: Note is a musical
chur-wi or tru-ly. Song is 3 or 4 soft gugling
notes.
Distribution &
Habitat
Eastern Bluebirds can be
found East of the Rockies in Southern Canada to
the Gulf states; also found in SouthEastern
Arizona to Nicaragua.
You will find the bluebird in open country with
scattered trees; farms and
roadsides.
Feeding Habits
Eastern
Bluebirds eat large amounts of insects. Favored
insects include grasshoppers, crickets,
katydids, and beetles. Eastern Bluebirds also
eat earthworms, spiders, millipedes,
centipedes, sow bugs, and snails. In addition
to insects, Eastern Bluebirds eat berries and
fruits off of small trees and shrubs.
Breeding and Nesting
Habits
The Bluebirds nest is made of grasses, plant
stems, pine needles, and lined with hair,
feathers, and fine grasses. The fact that these
birds are cavity nesters makes them ideal
candidates for a bird house. In fact, if there
was ever a bird in need of our help in
providing nest boxes, it is the Eastern
Bluebird.
The nest is placed in a birdhouse, or abandoned
woodpecker hole usually 3-20 feet above ground.
The female lays between 3-6 pale blue eggs. The
female will incubate the eggs for 13 - 16 days
and the young will leave the nest within 15 to
20 days. The male Eastern Bluebird will often
keep feeding the fledglings while the female
begins a second nest. A mature female will
typically raise two broods each
season.
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