The Indigo Bunting male is entirely electric blue — the result not of pigment but of microscopic feather structures that refract light — making it one of the most vivid birds in North America. It navigates on migration using the stars, calibrating its star map each year against the rotation point of the night sky. Males sing persistently from exposed perches throughout the summer.
Best time to see a Indigo Bunting
The best time to see a Indigo Bunting is April–June, when about 69% of U.S. sightings happen, based on 42,864 research-grade iNaturalist observations.
Not certain it is a Indigo Bunting? What bird is this? walks through what to check first and the lookalikes that catch people out.
Recent Indigo Bunting sightings near you
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