US #4883
2014 Mountain Bluebird – Songbirds
- Pictures a mountain bluebird
- One of 10 stamps picturing different species of songbird
Stamp Category: Commemorative
Set: Songbirds
Value: 49¢ First Class Mail Rate (Forever)
First Day of Issue: April 5, 2014
First Day City: Dallas, Texas
Quan... more
US #4883
2014 Mountain Bluebird – Songbirds
- Pictures a mountain bluebird
- One of 10 stamps picturing different species of songbird
Stamp Category: Commemorative
Set: Songbirds
Value: 49¢ First Class Mail Rate (Forever)
First Day of Issue: April 5, 2014
First Day City: Dallas, Texas
Quantity Issued: 400,000,000
Printed by: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd.
Printing Method: Offset
Format: Double-sided Booklets of 20
Tagging: Nonphosphored Type III, Overall Tagged
Why the stamp was issued: To commemorate the mountain bluebird and its unique song.
About the stamp design: Pictures a painting of a western meadowlark perched on a small branch with bright pink flowers. Artwork by Robert Giusti. The stamp also includes the species’ common name.
First Day City: In addition to the Dallas, Texas, First Day of Issue city, there was also a First Day of Sale ceremony held at the Philadelphia National Stamp Exposition in Oaks, Pennsylvania. They offered two different pictorial postmarks: one from Oaks and one from nearby Audubon, Pennsylvania. The pictorial cancels were designed by the American First Day Cover Society.
About the Songbirds set: Issued to commemorate the many species of songbirds that call America home and fill the air with the sounds of their unique tunes. Includes 10 different designs, each picturing a different species of songbird and its’ common name: western meadowlark, mountain bluebird, western tanager, painted bunting, Baltimore oriole, evening grosbeak, scarlet tanager, rose-breasted grosbeak, American goldfinch, and white-throated sparrow. In addition to the birds themselves, the stamps also picture different plants (often found in the birds’ natural habitats) acting as perches. Designs were created from paintings by Robert Giusti.
History the stamp represents: The mountain bluebird exhibits longer wings and a longer tail than other bluebird species in the thrush family. Also, unlike its eastern and western relatives, the male mountain bluebird is entirely blue with no trace of rose-beige on his breast.
As its name suggests, the mountain bluebird prefers higher elevations and is often found in the elevated and open prairies, tundra edges, and hillsides in the mountain areas of the American West. The species will migrate short distances to lower elevations when food becomes scarce. Flocks can often be seen scouring lower fields during the winter months. While this bluebird will forage for berries and seeds, it typically hunts insects from above, either from a convenient perch or in flight, hovering over the landscape and then pouncing on its prey.
Unlike many songbirds, the female mountain bluebird is not impressed by her male counterpart’s colorful sky-blue plumage. Nor is she persuaded by his melodious songs or talents in flight. Her main concern is his skill in securing a quality nest site.
Vacant tree cavities and manmade bluebird boxes are ideal nesting spots. Other cavity-nesting birds present stiff competition for such prime real estate. The mountain bluebird will fight fiercely to obtain and defend its chosen next site.
Less 
