The Eastern Bluebird arrives very early in the spring when some snow may still be on the ground and certainly by the time the snow has vanished but everything is painted in earth tones. Bluebirds prefer open areas and forage in small loose flocks that seldom settle in one place. They prefer to be on the move. On every occasion when I've seen them, excluding the sighting at Ashbridges, they adopted a foraging corridor. In the hydro field the corridor was along the gravel foot path because that is where the small trees and bushes were located. Again, at the Beare wetland they moved back and forth along the path between the paved access road and the dirt trail that led off into the wooded area, never far from the ponds. At Amos they were near the water but high in the barren trees. At Hall's Rd the female Mountain Bluebird, which was a rare displaced visitor, systematically foraged on the paved pathway, looking for insects, traveling from fence post to fence post to rest on a regular basis. I counted the number of posts it would pass before perching and found the number to be fairly consistent and therefore allowed me to predict where the next perch might be and positioned myself accordingly. The bird mostly ignored my staged proximity as long as I didn't move and buried my face behind the camera. Sometimes I was fixed on the anticipated perch even before the bird arrived, then applying my peripheral vision for surveillance of the approaching treasure. The same technique was taken perhaps to the extreme in the nearby hydro field. Again I observed the birds foraging back and forth along the gravel path with an amplitude of about half a kilometer. I noted that one tree in particular served as a resting perch as part of every excursion. This was important. Their perching height was not conducive to getting a good shot, nor were all the tangle of branches and twigs. Nonetheless, I went home a got a step ladder and my camo cloth and returned to the tree. I could see the bluebirds far down the path. I set up the step-ladder at the edge of the path and climbed to the top and sat down and then threw my camo cloth over me and waited. Sure enough the birds arrived and settled in the tree. I didn't even have time to decide on a good exposure setting before the flock perched and the branch/twig issue remained a thorn. Get it, ... branch ... twig ... thorn. Ah never mind, but I did get closer as demanded by my 200mm lens.
