Warblers, Sparrows, Finches & Blackbirds
Indigo Bunting
Passerina cyanea
A small songbird whose male glows electric blue in sunlight. It migrates at night using the stars to find its way.
How to identify it
- Male: entirely vivid blue (can look black in shade)
- Female: plain warm brown with faint streaks
- Small, cone-shaped bill
- Song of paired phrases: "what-what, where-where, see-it see-it"
SizeAbout the size of a Carolina Chickadee
Carolina Chickadee4 in
Indigo Bunting5 in
Song Sparrow6 in
American Robin10 in
6 inAverage length, bill to tail
Details
- Size
- 4.5–5 in long; wingspan 7.5–8.5 in
- Weight
- 0.4–0.6 oz
- Habitat
- Woodland edges, brushy fields, roadsides
- When to see it
- Summer across the East (April–October); winters in Central America and the Caribbean
- Diet
- Seeds, insects, berries
Range in the United States
Life history
Food
Eats insects in summer and seeds and berries the rest of the year.
Nesting
A cup of leaves and grass low in a shrub or tangle.
- Clutch
- 1–4 eggs
- Incubation
- 11–14 days
- Young
- Fledge at about 9–12 days
- Broods
- 1–2 per year
Behavior
Males sing tirelessly through summer, even in midday heat.
Conservation
Common, though slowly declining.
Cool facts
- It has no blue pigment; its color comes from the structure of its feathers.
- It navigates at night using the stars.
- Young males learn their songs from nearby adult males, not their fathers.
Songs & calls
▶Bird sounds video coming soon
Watch the Indigo Bunting
▶Video coming soon
