Indigo bunting singing

A male indigo bunting isn’t actually blue — the feathers have no blue pigment at all. The color comes entirely from microscopic feather structures that scatter light, the same trick that makes a blue jay or peacock feather blue. This one was singing from a low perch, the bill caught wide open mid-note.

Why it matters

Indigo buntings are one of the few songbirds known to navigate by the stars — young birds learn migratory direction from watching the night sky’s rotation around Polaris before their first fall migration.

Getting the shot

Fresh spring leaves gave a soft green wash behind the bird, letting that structural blue read at full saturation. Waited through a few verses of song for a moment with the bill open rather than settling for a closed-bill portrait.