Eastern Bluebird
Eastern Bluebird has held roughly steady: up 9% on the route-weighted index since 1968.
About the Eastern Bluebird
A beloved blue-and-rust thrush of open country and orchards, the Eastern Bluebird rebounded across the East thanks to widespread nest-box programs.
- Size
- 6.5–8.5 in long, about 1.1 oz (16–21 cm, 31 g)
- Habitat
- Woodlands and forest edges, including wooded suburbs and parks.
- Diet
- Insects taken from a low perch, plus berries in winter.
- Range
- Recorded on 2,634 Breeding Bird Survey routes across 42 states, most concentrated in the Appalachian Mountains.
- Family
- Turdidae · Forest birds
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Notable Eastern Bluebird Trends
No notable trend signals for Eastern Bluebird. See the full index history below.
Eastern Bluebird Population Forecast
If the recent trend holds, Eastern Bluebird is projected to stay roughly flat through 2029, near 4.4 (95% range 3.2–5.6). A 5-year backtest shows a typical error of ±20.3%, with 80% of held-out values landing inside the 95% band.
| Year | Projected index | 95% low | 95% high |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4.3 | 3.0 | 5.5 |
| 2026 | 4.3 | 3.1 | 5.5 |
| 2027 | 4.3 | 3.1 | 5.6 |
| 2028 | 4.4 | 3.1 | 5.6 |
| 2029 | 4.4 | 3.2 | 5.6 |
Where the Eastern Bluebird Is Detected
BBS routes recording Eastern Bluebird, sized by most recent count.
Eastern Bluebird Population Trend by State
| Alabama | +138% | 1968 | 107 |
| Arizona | -33% | 1970 | 4 |
| Arkansas | -36% | 1969 | 59 |
| Colorado | -74% | 1993 | 12 |
| Connecticut | +283% | 1968 | 20 |
| Delaware | 24× | 1969 | 15 |
| Florida | +29% | 1968 | 102 |
| Georgia | +122% | 1968 | 111 |
| Illinois | +81% | 1968 | 104 |
| Indiana | +14% | 1968 | 67 |
| Iowa | +13% | 1969 | 38 |
| Kansas | +169% | 1969 | 60 |
| Kentucky | -59% | 1968 | 64 |
| Louisiana | +98% | 1969 | 83 |
| Maine | +199% | 1968 | 53 |
| Maryland | +742% | 1968 | 76 |
| Massachusetts | +502% | 1968 | 29 |
| Michigan | +66% | 1968 | 106 |
| Minnesota | -26% | 1969 | 81 |
| Mississippi | +116% | 1968 | 71 |
| Missouri | +16% | 1969 | 95 |
| Montana | insufficient data | n/a | 3 |
| Nebraska | +173% | 1969 | 59 |
| New Hampshire | +393% | 1968 | 26 |
| New Jersey | +615% | 1968 | 36 |
| New Mexico | insufficient data | n/a | 4 |
| New York | +285% | 1968 | 124 |
| North Carolina | +413% | 1968 | 108 |
| North Dakota | +28% | 1971 | 43 |
| Ohio | +38% | 1968 | 88 |
| Oklahoma | -64% | 1969 | 69 |
| Pennsylvania | +263% | 1968 | 135 |
| Rhode Island | +367% | 1973 | 3 |
| South Carolina | +105% | 1968 | 51 |
| South Dakota | -31% | 1969 | 40 |
| Tennessee | +63% | 1968 | 54 |
| Texas | +39% | 1969 | 151 |
| Vermont | +107% | 1968 | 26 |
| Virginia | +502% | 1968 | 86 |
| West Virginia | -13% | 1968 | 62 |
| Wisconsin | -20% | 1968 | 98 |
| Wyoming | insufficient data | n/a | 11 |
Eastern Bluebird Population Trend by Region
Bird Conservation Regions are the ecological unit for trends.
| Prairie Potholes | -53% | 1969 | 89 |
| Boreal Hardwood Transition | -46% | 1968 | 118 |
| Lower Great Lakes / St. Lawrence Plain | +425% | 1968 | 86 |
| Atlantic Northern Forest | +134% | 1968 | 131 |
| Badlands and Prairies | -37% | 1970 | 50 |
| Shortgrass Prairie | -39% | 1979 | 26 |
| Central Mixed Grass Prairie | +29% | 1969 | 117 |
| Edwards Plateau | +317% | 1971 | 19 |
| Oaks and Prairies | -35% | 1969 | 74 |
| Eastern Tallgrass Prairie | +66% | 1968 | 275 |
| Prairie Hardwood Transition | +56% | 1968 | 159 |
| Central Hardwoods | -37% | 1968 | 166 |
| West Gulf Coastal Plain / Ouachitas | -41% | 1969 | 108 |
| Mississippi Alluvial Valley | +54% | 1968 | 67 |
| Southeastern Coastal Plain | +229% | 1968 | 340 |
| Appalachian Mountains | +34% | 1968 | 395 |
| Piedmont | +340% | 1968 | 169 |
| New England / Mid-Atlantic Coast | +712% | 1968 | 145 |
| Peninsular Florida | -29% | 1968 | 58 |
| Sierra Madre Occidental | -64% | 1970 | 4 |
| Gulf Coastal Prairie | +293% | 1970 | 26 |
Eastern Bluebird Conservation Status
Least Concern
The IUCN Red List rates this species as Least Concern. Our route-weighted index shows it up about 9% since 1968.
Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22. Trend is a route-weighted relative-abundance index, not an absolute population.