Way back in mid-June when I started my southern California sojourn I mentioned that I was inundated with Western Bluebirds. Carbon Canyon Regional Park in particular had a mob of them in the northeastern corner of the park where several nest boxes had clearly worked for the bluebirds. One afternoon I spent quite a bit of time watching and digiscoping a family group of Sialia mexicana, a great way to get to know the species better. Enjoy!

a pair of Western Bluebirds

This pair were my first Western Bluebirds of the trip. The male soon flew off but the female stuck around for a close-up.

female Western Bluebird

Though less colorful than the male, the female Western Bluebird is still a pretty nice bird.

juvenile Western Bluebird

This young Western Bluebird was trying to forage a bit on its own but wasn’t very good at it.

Western Bluebird with bug

It’s a good thing dad was good at catching bugs!

juvenile Western Bluebird

This perch allowed the juvenile to keep on eye on mom and dad and immediately fly to whichever parent found food first.

Western Bluebird juvenile taking off

Its sibling had the same idea.

Western Bluebird juvenile back view

Even from the back a juvenile Western Bluebird can’t conceal its identity.

Western Bluebird male

Western Bluebirds are simply spectacular!

I hope you liked these shots of Western Bluebirds.  If you want to see more great images of birds check out our big and growing page of photo galleries, 10,000 Clicks!

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Written by Corey
Corey is a New Yorker who lived most of his life in upstate New York but has lived in Queens since 2008. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative or spending time with his family. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy and Desmond Shearwater. His bird photographs have appeared on the Today Show, in Birding, Living Bird Magazine, Bird Watcher's Digest, and many other fine publications. He is also the author of the American Birding Association Field Guide to the Birds of New York.