Indigo Bunting

May 9, 2009

It was a really good thing that the one day a year that the indigo bunting came to our backyard fell on one of the days that I could be here to watch the fun. He is the only native bird that is dark blue all over. We had a one day viewing last year. He stops by for a snack, and we have to be grateful that we at least seem to be considered a rest stop with food.

Even though we can distinguish little brown birds much more accurately than last year, and even though we searched carefully, we never saw the little brown female bunting.

Our pretty, blue visitor enjoyed some finch seeds, sat in the weeping crabapple tree, then journeyed on. Maybe next year he'll come in brighter sunshine to show off that stunning blue and stay for a while (at least for a more lengthy photo shoot if not to raise a family).

Another bird enthusiast and I were chatting on the phone last April about bird houses (the decorative kind) and her wonderful collection of hand-carved birds.  I can't wait to see them.. She said an old farmer's wife from upstate New York had carved them in the '50's with very simple tools.

She mentioned that she has a visitor that comes to her yard each year for a very brief fly through.  This year, to her disappointment, only her husband saw the Indigo Bunting traveler.  This is a stunning blue bird that Food Guy, wistfully paging through our bird books, has often admired and hoped to see in person. 

Much to our surprise, it was only several days later in early May that we had an Indigo Bunting stop over with us for one day at our finch feeder- just long enough to snap some photos.  What a delightful little bird!