Bluebird WESTERN BIRDS 



GENUS SIALIA: MOUNTAIN BLUE- 

 BIRD. 



Mountain Bluebird: Sialia currucoides. 

 FAMILY— THRUSHES, BLUEBIRDS, ETC. 



To the bird student in the west is given the pleasure 

 of seeing still another Bluebird; that is, if he be so for- 

 tunate, for this bird is a lover of the mountains, only- 

 straying into the lower altitudes during the winter 

 months, and in many localities being rare visitors, at 

 best. 



It is about seven inches long and more slender than 

 the common Bluebird. The upper parts are a rich ceru- 

 lean blue, which are paler beneath with a greenish cast. 

 The winter plumage is dulled by brownish tips to 

 feathers above and below. The females are subdued in 

 coloring, having gray upper parts, which contrast beau- 

 tifully, yet blend with the bright wings and tail, the 

 blue of the under parts showing through a soft fawn 

 color. 



This gay bundle of feathers is known as the Moun- 

 tain, or Arctic, Bluebird and breeds from southern Yukon 

 south to the mountains of Arizona, New Mexico; and 

 from the Cascade Range and Sierra Nevada to south- 

 western North Dakota and western Nebraska ; wintering 

 from California and Colorado south; and east to Kan- 

 sas, Oklahoma, and Texas. In southern California they 

 breed in the higher mountains, mostly on the eastern 

 slope, south to the San Bernardino Range, sometimes 

 during the winter months straying into the valleys and 

 foothills to the delight of all beholders. They are rare 

 enough to make the seeing of one a red-letter day for 

 the bird student. 



Like their cousins, they build in cavities, holes in 



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