"Juvenile Helpers" in Bluebirds of North America Summer Issue!

By September, most of our Eastern Bluebirds in Tennessee are wandering, hanging out in open fields and woodland edges, families of bluebirds traveling together, and some flocking with other families, to teach their juveniles survival skills.  

Watching bluebird families is fascinating and I decided to share some of my observations with the Journal of the North American Bluebirds Society.  To my delight, the publication editor, Scott Gillihan, liked my article and published it in the 2014 Summer issue of Bluebird, Journal of the North American Bluebird Society, with the title, "Eastern Bluebird Juvenile Helpers in Two Successive Seasons."

The article and photos describe my observations in 2011 and again, in 2012, when in the last days before a family's second brood was to fledge, the parent female disappeared. The male solicited help from his three juveniles to care for the young, and I watched the juveniles participate in feeding the nestlings, removing fecal sacs, chasing away intruders, and feeding their siblings after they fledged.

Visit the North America Bluebird Society's website to find a wealth of information about bluebirds. In Tennessee, as well as, many southeastern states, bluebirds remain near their breeding territories during the winter months, visiting nest boxes for potential winter roost sites and in search of possible nesting sites in the spring.

Above, two eastern bluebird juveniles visit the bird bath.

The Journal, Bluebirds, is a publication that is received with membership in the North American Bluebird Society.  Information about membership can be found here.

Visit my videos of juvenile helpers at this link:  Bluebird Family Videos and see more blog posts about bluebird families by clicking the link.