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Indigo Bunting
Passerina cyanea
27.5573, -82.5394
Field Notes
Description:
Indigo Buntings are about small (4.5-5 inches in length) birds with short tails and short, thick, conical bills. An adult breeding male is blue all over, with and a shiny, silver-gray bill. Females are basically brown, with faint streaking on the breast, a whitish throat, and sometimes a touch of blue on the wings, tail, or rump. Immature males are patchy blue and brown.
Habitat:
The preferred habitat of the Indigo Bunting is woodland edges.They will adapt to bushy areas near a power lines or along roads, as well as next to old fields or pastures. They are commonly seen over much of eastern North American, breeding from northern Florida to southern Canada and spending winters from southern Florida to northern South America. These indigo buntings were photographed near bird feeders in the Felts Audubon Preserve in west central Florida.
Notes:
An interesting fact from whatbird.com: Indigo Buntings are actually black; the diffraction of light through their feathers makes them look blue. This explains why males can appear many shades from turquoise to black.
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