Lazuli Bunting
Passerina amoena
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyCardinalidae (Cardinals and Allies)
- GenusPasserina (North American Buntings)
- SpeciesPasserina amoena (Lazuli Bunting)
About the Lazuli Bunting
The lazuli bunting (Passerina amoena) is a North American songbird named for the gemstone lapis lazuli. Measurements: Length: 5.1–5.9 in (13–15 cm) Weight: 0.5–0.6 oz (13–18 g) Wingspan: 8.7 in (22 cm) The male is easily recognized by its bright blue head and back (lighter than the closely related indigo bunting), its conspicuous white wingbars, and its light rusty breast and white belly. The color pattern may suggest the eastern and western bluebirds, but the smaller size (13–15 cm or 5–5.9 inches long), wingbars, and short and conical bunting bill quickly distinguish it. The female is brown, grayer above and warmer underneath, told from the female indigo bunting by two thin and pale wingbars and other plumage details.
The song is a high, rapid, strident warble, similar to that of the indigo bunting but longer and with less repetition. Lazuli buntings breed mostly west of the 100th meridian from southern Canada to northern Texas, central New Mexico and Arizona, and southern California. On the Pacific coast their breeding range extends south to extreme northwestern Baja California. They migrate to southeastern Arizona and... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Saguaro National Park
Blue Grosbeak
Passerina caerulea
Varied Bunting
Passerina versicolor
Indigo Bunting
Passerina cyanea
Painted Bunting
Passerina ciris
Northern Cardinal
Cardinalis cardinalis
Pyrrhuloxia
Cardinalis sinuatus
Western Tanager
Piranga ludoviciana
Summer Tanager
Piranga rubra
Black-headed Grosbeak
Pheucticus melanocephalus
Dickcissel
Spiza americana
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Pheucticus ludovicianus
Hepatic Tanager
Piranga flava
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Lazuli Bunting in Saguaro National Park?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Lazuli Bunting sighting in Saguaro National Park, based on 2,674 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Lazuli Bunting in Saguaro National Park?
August has the highest sighting rate for Lazuli Bunting in Saguaro National Park in our monthly data.