Wingspan: 11 ½ - 13 ¼ Inches

Age: may live to be 6 years old.

Range: Eastern North America from the Atlantic Coast west to the Rocky Mountains including southern Canada.

Food: Mostly insects, also snails, earthworms and various kinds of berries.

Nesting: Built mostly by the female in natural cavities, old woodpecker holes, holes in stumps and fence posts, and bird boxes, at a height of 3-10 feet above the ground. Nest is constructed of dried grasses, pine needles; weed stems, and lined with finer grasses, hairs, and sometimes feathers. The female incubates from 3-7, most often 4-5, pale blue eggs for 13-16 days. The egg color may sometimes be white. Young leave the nest 15-20 days after hatching. Bluebirds usually have two broods a year, occasionally three.

Although the Eastern Bluebird is the state bird of New York, it has experienced a serious decline in numbers in many places. A lack of suitable nesting cavities coupled with competition from the aggressive European starling and European House Sparrow is in large part responsible for this situation. In response to this problem SOFO has an ongoing Bluebird Recovery Program that erects Bluebird nest boxes at various locations around the South Fork. This project has been successful at increasing the number of breeding Bluebirds on the eastern end of Long Island. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation lists the Eastern Bluebird as a species of special concern.