{"id":63642,"date":"2020-01-31T05:07:53","date_gmt":"2020-01-31T12:07:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=63642"},"modified":"2025-05-19T13:52:37","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T18:52:37","slug":"juvenile-mountain-bluebird-in-the-wasatch-mountains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/01\/31\/juvenile-mountain-bluebird-in-the-wasatch-mountains\/","title":{"rendered":"Juvenile Mountain Bluebird In The Wasatch Mountains"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"JuvenileJuvenile Mountain Bluebird perched in a Chokecherry tree \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

When I was looking for the House Wren photos<\/span><\/a> I shared yesterday I came across a folder that contained images I had taken in the Wasatch Mountains<\/span><\/a> which are closer to home than the Uinta Mountains where I photographed the wrens. As I looked through the image files I decided to process one of the images of a young Mountain Bluebird to share here today.<\/p>\n

Last year wasn’t a great for photographing Mountain Bluebirds in many of the locations where I had photographed them before. They simply weren’t there in the numbers that they had been in previous breeding seasons. We did have a cold, wet, and late spring thaw in the mountains and that may have affected the bluebirds high in the Wasatch Mountains but I also saw fewer Mountain Bluebirds in other locations.<\/p>\n

Our current climate crisis could mean Utah might lose our Mountain Bluebirds, according to National Audubon if no action is taken on our climate crisis 78% of Mountain Bluebird summer range in Utah will be lost and 22% of their winter range here will be gone too.<\/p>\n

I hope that when the snow in the Wasatch Mountains melts this spring and the trees begin to leaf out that I will see the Mountain Bluebirds return to the places where I have seen them in large numbers in previous breeding seasons. I also hope that their absence last year was just a fluke caused by the bad late spring weather.<\/p>\n

This juvenile Mountain Bluebird was photographed as it perched in a chokecherry tree not far from a dirt road up in the mountains in June of 2018. An adult male and several of its siblings were also nearby. While I photographed this juvenile bluebird it called softly and begged the adult male for food.<\/p>\n

I can’t imagine not seeing these beautiful Mountain Bluebirds feeding, breeding and raising their young in the mountains that are close to where I live. We need to take care of our planet.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

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

I can’t imagine not seeing these beautiful Mountain Bluebirds feeding, breeding and raising their young in the mountains that are close to where I live.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":145278,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_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":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27,1369,1731,26,773],"tags":[5933,4880,3940,6531,4067,4071,6583,228,4069,4104,6532,4339,2315],"class_list":["post-63642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-mountain-bluebirds","category-summit-county-utah","category-utah","category-wasatch-mountains","tag-bluebird","tag-bluebirds","tag-canyon","tag-chokecherry","tag-immature","tag-juvenile","tag-leaves","tag-mountain-bluebird","tag-mountains","tag-perched","tag-prunus-virginiana","tag-sialia-currucoides","tag-summer-3"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountian-bluebird-juvenile-perched-mia-mcpherson-5679-1.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-gyu","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":47472,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/06\/28\/mountain-bluebirds-with-juveniles-in-summit-county\/","url_meta":{"origin":63642,"position":0},"title":"Mountain Bluebirds with Juveniles in Summit County","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"June 28, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The young Mountain Bluebird turned and snatched the cricket from the male quickly before any of its siblings could reach the branches.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Mountain Bluebird feeding a cricket to a juvenile, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-fledgling-mia-mcpherson-4314.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-fledgling-mia-mcpherson-4314.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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juvenile perched on a sagebrush stump, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-perched-on-sage-stump-mia-mcpherson-5189.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-perched-on-sage-stump-mia-mcpherson-5189.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-perched-on-sage-stump-mia-mcpherson-5189.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-perched-on-sage-stump-mia-mcpherson-5189.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 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Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-adult-mia-mcpherson-4334.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-adult-mia-mcpherson-4334.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-adult-mia-mcpherson-4334.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-adult-mia-mcpherson-4334.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":53294,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/07\/31\/juvenile-mountain-bluebird-perched-on-sagebrush-small-in-the-frame\/","url_meta":{"origin":63642,"position":3},"title":"Juvenile Mountain Bluebird Perched On Sagebrush – Small In The Frame","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 31, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"This juvenile Mountain Bluebird was hunting for food its own, perching on sagebrush and then diving to the ground after prey.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Juvenile Mountain Bluebird perched on sagebrush, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-sage-mia-mcpherson-7003-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-sage-mia-mcpherson-7003-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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McPherson","date":"July 8, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Last month I had a few opportunities to photograph juvenile Mountain Bluebirds in a Wasatch Mountain canyon while they were being fed by adults and as they learned to hunt on their own.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Juvenile Mountain Bluebird and an ant on the road, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-ant-mia-mcpherson-7489.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-ant-mia-mcpherson-7489.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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