An Eastern Bluebird Brawl
“Let’s get ready to rumbleeeeeee!”
An Eastern Bluebird fight was the last thing I expected to see in the backyard of my parent’s southern Alabama home, but that’s what I got two days after Christmas. My parents and I were taking down Christmas decorations and putting them in the shed in the backyard. As I was exiting the back door, two male Eastern Bluebirds were engaged in mid-air combat, clawing and grappling with one another as they flew just a few feet away. I thought that they might be spooked by my presence and fly off, but they just kept on fighting. As I ran back into the house to get my camera I heard my mom yell at them “Ya’ll stop that fighting. Ain’t no woman worth all that.” Hahaha!
I ran back to the bedroom and grabbed my Nikon Z8 which had the 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens already attached. When I returned to the backyard the birds were still fighting, but as I got in position, they flew about 20 feet away. There they landed on the ground and fought like crazy, stabbing each other with their beaks and clawing with their feet.
After about 30 seconds, I noticed that there were two other Bluebirds fighting on the ground just three feet away from the first pair. The first brawling pair were the females and the other pair were the males. It was a battle royale between two couples!
So what was the fight all about?
My parents have a single bluebird box on their fence and I suspect that this was a fight for control of that nesting box.
This type of behavior is described on birdsoftheworld.org. From the “agonistic behavior” section of the Eastern Bluebird profile:
“Fights are the usual terminal point of ‘highly motivated’ chases. Once individuals make contact, both combatants may strike one another with their wings, grab feathers with beaks, and grapple with their feet at each others' bodies. Individual bluebirds also head-peck during fights. Head pecking appears highly motivated in that it is often done rapidly as if to a staccato rhythm. Fights are often extended, with combatants falling to the ground, paying no attention to their surroundings.”
Eastern Bluebirds, female. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1250.
Eastern Bluebirds. Two females fighting with a male looking on.Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1400.
Eastern Bluebirds, males. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1400.
Eastern Bluebirds, males. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1400.
Eastern Bluebirds, males. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/8, 1/1600 sec, ISO 2200.
Eastern Bluebirds, males. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/8, 1/1600 sec, ISO 2200.
The birdsoftheworld description exactly matches what I saw and photographed. It was a remarkable display of agonistic behavior in a species so often seen as cute and lovable.
If you are interested in building Bluebird boxes, I recommend this Audubon tutorial and this one too.
Happy birding!
