Episode 19: Indigo Bunting – Voice of the Wild

Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea). 

While the Indigo Bunting is named for the breeding male’s exceptionally blue plumage, the female’s plumage is also exceptional; a rich fawn brown. Look for the Indigo Bunting in hedgerows, forest edges, and other savannalike habitats. Their song is generally sang in multiple phrases, each two notes long. 

Do you want to learn more bird songs, frog calls, and insect noises? Join Voice of the Wild every Friday to explore a new wild voice. From time to time, we’ll also do a deep dive into wildlife science, news, and natural history. Voice of the Wild is brought to you by the University of Illinois Extension Natural Resources, Environment, and Energy program. 

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The following Cornell Lab | Macaulay Library recordings were used in this episode: 

Indigo Bunting song by Wil Hershberger (ML509853) 

Indigo Bunting second song by Wil Hershberger (ML509852) 

Indigo Bunting call by Wil Hershberger (ML509857) 

 

Sources and more: 

• https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Indigo_Bunting/ 
• https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/indigo-bunting 
• Sibley, David. Sibley Birds East: Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America. Second edition. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2016. Print. 
• Peterson, Roger Tory, and Virginia Marie Peterson. A Field Guide to the Birds: A Completely New Guide to All the Birds of Eastern and Central North America. Fourth edition, completely revised and enlarged. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980. Print. 
• Dobson, Colin et al. Field Guide to Hotspots and Birds in Illinois. Champaign-Urbana: Scissortail LLC, 2023. Print. 
• Godfrey, Michael A, John Farrand, and Roger Tory Peterson. Videoguide to the Birds of North America. New York, N.Y: MasterVision, 1985. Film. 

What is Voice of the Wild?

If you learn to listen for them, you will find wildlife everywhere. Voice of the Wild is a podcast about wildlife and the wild sounds they make. Tune in every Friday to learn a new bird song, frog call, or insect noise.

This is Illinois Extension’s Voice of the Wild. a new wild voice in just a moment, so find someplace quiet, take a deep breath, and enjoy.

This summer singer is named for the breeding male’s exceptionally blue plumage, so deep and so blue it can look black as it sings from a powerline in the shimmering heat. The female’s plumage is also exceptional; a rich fawn brown. The bird tends to stick hedgerows, forest edges, and other savannalike habitats. Their song, which they sing from sunup to sun down, is variable but tends to be composed of notes sung in pairs, often with a slight descending quality.

This is the indigo bunting, Passerina cyanea from the cardinal family Cardinalidae. Listen again to how the indigo bunting changes the tone of its two syllable phrases after each one is given. Here it is again.

Thank you to the Macaulay library at the Cornell lab for our bird sounds. And thank you for tuning in to learn a new bird call with Illinois Extension.