{"id":137998,"date":"2024-12-21T02:44:52","date_gmt":"2024-12-21T08:44:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=137998"},"modified":"2024-12-20T19:11:11","modified_gmt":"2024-12-21T01:11:11","slug":"eastern-bluebird-with-a-christmas-gnome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/12\/21\/eastern-bluebird-with-a-christmas-gnome\/","title":{"rendered":"Eastern Bluebird With A Christmas Gnome"},"content":{"rendered":"

Having a female Eastern Bluebird perch on a lovely Christmas gnome decoration? That\u2019s great fun and a joyous way to usher in the holidays here in Arkansas.<\/p>\n

\"FemaleFemale Eastern Bluebird on a Christmas decoration \u2013 Canon R7, f8, 1\/200, ISO 1000, +0.3 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

The bluebird landed on the gnome while I was fully zoomed out to 400mm. That meant I essentially took a portrait of the gnome with the female Eastern Bluebird perched on its festive green and white hat with the red poinsettia.<\/p>\n

It looked like the bluebird was checking out the holiday decorations in the garden. Maybe she was examining them, or maybe she wasn\u2019t. We\u2019ll never know for sure.<\/p>\n

\"FemaleFemale Eastern Bluebird and a Christmas Gnome \u2013 Canon R7, f8, 1\/250, ISO 1000, +0.3 EV, Canon 100-400mm at 300mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

As soon as I had taken a few close-up images, I zoomed back to 300mm so I could include more of the smiling Christmas gnome.<\/p>\n

Christmas is coming up fast, and I’m glad that this year I’ve had the opportunity to take some bird photographs that are both festive and fun.<\/p>\n

The Christmas gnome reminds me of all the garden gnomes I used to see in people\u2019s gardens when I lived in Germany. Local myths and increased leisure time led to the gnomes becoming popular in gardens throughout the country.<\/p>\n

Legend has it that these gnomes protect gardens and bring good luck. They are still used today to watch over crops and livestock, often tucked into the rafters of a barn or placed in the garden.<\/p>\n

Garden gnomes<\/span><\/a> are a big thing in Germany. I used to have a few of my own. Gnomes make me smile, and so do birds.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Happy Winter Solstice my friends!<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Eastern Bluebird photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Having a female Eastern Bluebird perch on a lovely Christmas gnome decoration? That\u2019s great fun and a joyous way to usher in the holidays here in Arkansas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":137992,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13950,14094,13951],"tags":[4004,970,5933,4880,6301,16066,14096,4620,13981,4070,13931,16067,4104,14095,15824,3844,4881,13966],"class_list":["post-137998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","category-eastern-bluebirds","category-sebastian-county","tag-adult","tag-autumn","tag-bluebird","tag-bluebirds","tag-christmas","tag-christmas-decoration","tag-eastern-bluebird","tag-fall","tag-feeder","tag-female","tag-garden","tag-gnome","tag-perched","tag-sialia-sialis","tag-suburban","tag-thrush","tag-thrushes","tag-yard"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/eastern-bluebird-female-gnome-mia-mcpherson-9756.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-zTM","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":136559,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/11\/09\/autumn-eastern-bluebird-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":137998,"position":0},"title":"Autumn 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Arkansas","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/eastern-bluebird-adult-male-mia-mcpherson-7034.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/eastern-bluebird-adult-male-mia-mcpherson-7034.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/eastern-bluebird-adult-male-mia-mcpherson-7034.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/eastern-bluebird-adult-male-mia-mcpherson-7034.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":151051,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/07\/29\/eastern-bluebird-nest-box-news-chicks-are-ready-to-fledge\/","url_meta":{"origin":137998,"position":3},"title":"Eastern Bluebird Nest Box News – Chicks Are Ready To Fledge","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 29, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Eastern Bluebird chicks in one of my friend Steve Creek's nest boxes are getting ready to fledge. It won't be long before they start exploring the world.","rel":"","context":"In "Arkansas"","block_context":{"text":"Arkansas","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/arkansas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Eastern Bluebird chick getting ready to fledge, Sebastian County, Arkansas","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-bluebird-chick-nestbox-mia-mcpherson-3811.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-bluebird-chick-nestbox-mia-mcpherson-3811.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-bluebird-chick-nestbox-mia-mcpherson-3811.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/eastern-bluebird-chick-nestbox-mia-mcpherson-3811.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":147718,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/06\/03\/eastern-bluebird-in-a-light-rain\/","url_meta":{"origin":137998,"position":4},"title":"Eastern Bluebird In A Light Rain","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"June 3, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Bad weather doesn\u2019t usually stop me from photographing birds and wildlife. 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