A joy to see

Earlier this year, I took so many photos of Mountain Bluebirds, but only uploaded a handful, so as not to bore people : ) Had to backup and delete a few more photos this evening, and came across this one of a handsome male and thought I'd post it. Taken on 12 June 2013, along a gravel backroad SW of Calgary.

In Bluebirds, the blue colour is produced by the structure of the feather - there is no blue pigment. "Tiny air pockets in the barbs of feathers can scatter incoming light, resulting in a specific, non-iridescent color. Blue colors in feathers are almost always produced in this manner. Examples include the blue feathers of Bluebirds, Indigo Buntings, Blue Jay's and Steller's Jays."

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mountain_Bluebird/id

www.jstor.org/discover/pgs/index?id=10.2307/4077277&i...