Not your typical blue bird

The indigo bunting is a small migratory songbird. It winters in southern Mexico, Central America and the islands of the Gulf of Mexico. During the warm months its range extends north as far as parts of southern Canada and into the southwestern U.S. as far as Arizona. 

The adult male molts in springtime and turns a brilliant blue as it migrates north. Both male and female are brown during winter and the female is brown year round. We sometimes see the adult male with brown and blue feathers during early springtime in Southeast Missouri.

Pictured here is a photo taken on May 10 of a male in summer plumage. I took another photo of the nest with young on June 2. They were 4 days old. The female was at the nest and the male was nearby nervously alerting her of my presence. 

Although the adults eat a lot of small seeds such as grass seeds, they will feed their babies insects. Insects are easier for the dainty nestlings to digest, are higher in protein than seeds, and have higher moisture content than seeds.

Through the Woods is a weekly nature photo column by Aaron Horrell. Find this column at semissouiran.com to order a reprint of the photo. Find more work by Aaron at The Painted Wren Gallery.