Join us at the Chapman DeMary Trail on Sunday, June 28 to learn about Eastern bluebirds and walk to the bluebird trail that was installed for a Girl Scout Bronze Award project. At 1 p.m., we will walk from the Chapman DeMary Trail to the Suzanne R. Kane Nature Preserve where the bluebird boxes have been installed. Sign up online if you plan to join us: https://purcellvilleva.gov/881/Monthly-Nature-Walks.
In 2025, Elaine Opinsky and Scarlett Baboval earned their Girl Scout Bronze Award by installing a bluebird trail. Learn about their project and why they selected it. This bluebird trail is part of the system of trails monitored by the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy. One of their bluebird trail monitors will join the walk to provide details about the program, information about bluebirds, and the value of having these established trails.
Here are some facts about Eastern Bluebirds from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website:
- Eastern Bluebirds live in our area year-round.
- Eastern Bluebirds eat mostly insects, wild fruit and berries.
- Occasionally, Eastern Bluebirds have also been observed capturing and eating larger prey items such as shrews, salamanders, snakes, lizards and tree frogs.
- Bluebirds can sight their tiny prey items from 60 feet or more away.
- Blue in birds always depends on the light, and male bluebirds often look plain gray-brown from a distance.
- Eastern Bluebird populations fell in the early twentieth century as aggressive introduced species such as European Starlings and House Sparrows made available nest holes increasingly difficult for bluebirds to hold on to. In the 1960s and 1970s, establishment of bluebird trails and other nest-box campaigns alleviated much of this competition and Eastern Bluebird numbers have been recovering since.
Discover Nature’s Secrets is a monthly series of nature walks and environmental programs designed to inspire appreciation for the natural world. The program is hosted by the Purcellville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, often in partnership with the Tree and Environment Sustainability Committee and the Purcellville Arts Council.