Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena)

[Donkees]

Kurisuhoyin

The beauty of the Lazuli Bunting did not escape the early naturalist who named it Passerina amoena, meaning beautiful sparrow.

Each male Lazuli Bunting sings a unique combination of notes. Yearling males generally arrive on the breeding grounds without a song of their own. Shortly after arriving, they create their own song by rearranging syllables and combining song fragments of several males. The song they put together is theirs for life.

When young males copy older, nearby males, they create a kind of “song neighborhood” where songs from a particular area all sound similar. Males from the same neighborhood learn to recognize and tolerate each other. They respond more aggressively to unfamiliar songs that come from outside their neighborhood.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Lazuli_Bunting/overview#

[WestMichRad]

1. Similar to eastern bluebird

… but the Lazuli bunting has wing bars that are lacking on the bluebird. Bluebird also usually (but not necessarily always!) has a larger brownish patch on the breast.