{"id":82451,"date":"2021-03-27T05:09:29","date_gmt":"2021-03-27T11:09:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=82451"},"modified":"2025-05-19T14:42:00","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T19:42:00","slug":"mountain-bluebird-on-the-aquarius-plateau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/03\/27\/mountain-bluebird-on-the-aquarius-plateau\/","title":{"rendered":"Mountain Bluebird On The Aquarius Plateau"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MaleMale Mountain Bluebird on the Aquarius Plateau \u2013 Nikon D810, f6.3, 1\/1600, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I thought this male Mountain Bluebird photographed on the Aquarius Plateau<\/span><\/a> in Wayne County, Utah positively glowed in the early morning light. I found him near a Greater Sage-Grouse Lek on a wind-swept sagebrush steppe almost exactly six years ago today.<\/p>\n

The last couple of times I have been out in the field I’ve spotted Mountain Bluebirds on the wing near locations where I have seen them nesting in previous years. Sometimes all I see is a flash of blue and they are gone, sometimes I just hear their soft flight calls<\/span><\/a>. Each and every encounter with these beautiful blue birds makes me smile.<\/p>\n

Mountain Bluebirds here in northern Utah will be looking for nesting cavities\u00a0 or man made nest boxes soon if they aren’t already searching for them.<\/p>\n

On the wing, perched on a fence post, or foraging on the ground, Mountain Bluebirds add a splash of color wherever I find them.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/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 thought this male Mountain Bluebird photographed on the Aquarius Plateau in Wayne County, Utah positively glowed in the early morning light.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":145319,"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":[27,3427,1369,26,2486],"tags":[4004,6957,4430,5933,4880,6402,3830,11239,4062,228,4104,2660,4339,2727,165,3844,4881,11238],"class_list":["post-82451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-dixie-national-forest","category-mountain-bluebirds","category-utah","category-wayne-county","tag-adult","tag-aquarius-plateau","tag-barbed-wire","tag-bluebird","tag-bluebirds","tag-early-spring","tag-fence","tag-glowed","tag-male","tag-mountain-bluebird","tag-perched","tag-sagebrush-steppe","tag-sialia-currucoides","tag-song-bird","tag-spring","tag-thrush","tag-thrushes","tag-wind-swept"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-aquarius-plateau-mia-mcpherson-6920.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-lrR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":44648,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/01\/29\/mountain-bluebird-blue-on-blue\/","url_meta":{"origin":82451,"position":0},"title":"Mountain Bluebird – Blue on Blue","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 29, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"This photo of a male Mountain Bluebird in Wayne County, Utah made me smile when I thought about the location where it was created because it is so wild and beautiful up there.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Mountain Bluebird in Wayne County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-mia-mcpherson-6941.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-mia-mcpherson-6941.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-mia-mcpherson-6941.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-mia-mcpherson-6941.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":37342,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/03\/24\/mountain-bluebird-plumage-development-stages\/","url_meta":{"origin":82451,"position":1},"title":"Mountain Bluebird Plumage Development Stages","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 24, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"These images from different times of the year show Mountain Bluebird plumage development stages from not long after fledging to adulthood.","rel":"","context":"In "Beaverhead County"","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Perched juvenile Mountain Bluebird, Centennial Valley, Beaverhead County, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7094.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-mia-mcpherson-7094.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7094.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7094.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-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, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-fledgling-mia-mcpherson-4314.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-fledgling-mia-mcpherson-4314.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":90551,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/06\/18\/male-mountain-bluebird-perched-on-mullein\/","url_meta":{"origin":82451,"position":3},"title":"Male Mountain Bluebird Perched On Mullein","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"June 18, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"I haven't had many bluebirds in my viewfinder this spring so when this adult male Mountain Bluebird perched on mullein showed up last week I was happy to photograph it.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Mountain Bluebird perched on mullein, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/mountain-bluebird-male-on-mullein-mia-mcpherson-5870.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-on-mullein-mia-mcpherson-5870.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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