A stunning small bunting — males turquoise-blue with rust breast band. Western counterpart to Indigo Bunting; they hybridize where ranges overlap.

Native status: Native to North America

§ Quick facts

SizeBody 12–17 cm (4.7–6.7 in); wingspan 18–24 cm
Weight13–25 g
LifespanWild typically 2–4 years
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyCardinalidae

§ Encyclopedia

The lazuli bunting is a North American songbird named for the gemstone lapis lazuli.

Source: Wikipedia — Lazuli bunting Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

§ Identification

Field marks. Breeding male: brilliant turquoise-blue head and back, orange breast band, white belly, two white wing bars. Females warm brown with faint wing bars and a bluish rump.

Similar species. Indigo Bunting male is all-blue without the orange breast or wing bars; females are very similar where ranges overlap and hybridize.

Voice. A high, jumbled series of paired warbled phrases, each note often repeated.

§ Diet & behavior

Diet. Seeds (primary), insects (especially during breeding).

Behavior. A bird of brushy western hillsides and streamside thickets; males sing persistently from exposed perches. Young males learn song 'dialects' from neighbors.

§ Range

Western North America in summer

§ Habitat

Brushy riparian areas, shrub-steppe

§ Threats

Habitat loss, climate change.

§ Conservation status

According to the IUCN Red List, the lazuli bunting is currently classified as Least Concern.

§ What helps

Support western shrub-steppe conservation.

Support our work More ways to help

§ Further reading

§ Sources cited

  • Cornell Lab of Ornithology — All About Birds
  • National Audubon Society
  • iNaturalist
  • IUCN Red List