We’ve got Bluebirds! A pair of Western Bluebirds have been hanging out at one of our two nest boxes on the LMU Campus. They look so lovely on the lawn by the Sacred Heart Chapel, or on the bench near the Jacaranda trees–clearly they think they own the place! We hopefully will be expecting babies soon, so stay tuned! Remember, Bluebirds bring good luck, and we are oh-so-lucky to have them dazzle us with their beauty and song.
We hope you enjoy these beautiful shots of the bluebirds seen on our very own campus, accompanied by some interesting facts about what make them so special. Thanks to the Sydney Stern Memorial Trust for funding the project for making the bluebird boxes, and to Ian Kimbrey for making them and installing them on Campus last July!
Here are our resident bluebirds, Blue Ivy Carter (left) and Sage (right) enjoying time spent together. These friends were photographed by our own Lisa Fimiani and named by CURes staff members Roya Shahnazari and Grace Foreman to best represent the happy, peaceful energy they bring to our campus environment. FUN FACT: Male western bluebirds (left) have blue heads and backs, while females (right) are gray tinted with blue highlights on their wings and tails.FUN FACT: The oldest recorded western bluebird was 8 years old, found in California in 2008 after being previously tagged by conservationists!Blue Ivy Carter and Sage seem to know that they’re being photographed, and they certainly look great posing for the camera!FUN FACT: Western bluebirds are insectivorous foragers- they love to eat bugs and also enjoy various types of berries in the winter.FUN FACT: Most bluebird species actually mate for life, including the western bluebird!Sage preps the nest for a cozy spring season!FUN FACT: Western bluebirds’ beaks aren’t the best for creating natural bird nests, so they search for holes in trees to make their own (or use nest boxes like ours!).FUN FACT: Western bluebirds only weigh about an ounce – they only need around 15 calories a day to sustain themselves!Blue Ivy Carter and Sage take a relaxing break from the nest on some of the campus benches.We love having these two on campus, and hope they were able to bring some joy into your spring season, too.
Western bluebirds are common, but they still need help to keep their population strong and mighty. We encourage you to reach out to CURes to learn more about what we can all do to help these friends live long and happy lives!
