nest 10 July 1999

The INDIGO BUNTING is a regular spring & fall vagrant to California. A few summer annually and small numbers have nested (mostly in the southeast) or have hybridized with Lazuli Buntings. Winter records are quite rare.

All of my California records are listed below. Those preceded by H were found or co-found by me personally; those preceded by K receive some partial credit (e.g., I was involved in sorting out i.d. of a previously discovered bird or refound a vagrant that had been thought to have left). My notes in the 1970s do not always sort out credit issues so it is possible additional birds might have been "self-found." As with many eastern vagrants, many more were seen during active rarity chasing throughout the state in younger days, and a higher percentage of records from my local county (MTY) in recent years.

My personal Indigo Bunting records:

6/1/74    Deep Springs INY     male
6/2/74    Oasis MNO     female
6/3/74    Deep Springs INY     different male
5/26/75    Deep Springs INY     male
5/29/75    Santa Barbara I. SBA     male
6/1/75    Oasis MNO     female
5/22/76    Oasis MNO     2 males
5/24/76    Deep Springs INY     male
5/29/76    Oasis MNO     male
5/31/76    Deep Springs INY     female
5/18/76    Limantour Rd., Pt. Reyes MRN     singing male
5/21/77    Clark Mt. SBE    male
H 5/22/77    Furnace Creek INY     female
5/23/77    Oasis MNO     female
5/23/77    Stovepipe Wells INY     male
H 5/24/77    Furnace Creek INY     male
5/24-25/77    Deep Springs INY     male
5/25-26/77    Furnace Creek INY     different male
5/28/77    Furnace Creek INY     another male
5/29/77    Deep Springs INY     male
5/30/77    Furnace Creek INY     yet another new male
H 6/26/77    SE Farallon I. SF     female banded
10/2/77    Goleta SBA     imm
H 5/21/79    Needles SBE     male
5/24/79    Oasis MNO     female
5/24/79    Deep Springs INY     2 males
5/24/79    Scottys Castle INY     male
5/25/79    Deep Springs INY     female
5/27 & 29/79    Scottys Castle INY     singing male
5/30/79    Oasis MNO    male
5/22/81    Mesquite Springs INY    male
H 10/6/84    Carmel R. mouth MTY      2 imms (like male & fem); details in notes
11/4/86    Carmel R. mouth MTY     imm fem; photo
H 10/23/88    Furnace Creek INY     imm female
H 5/20 & 23/92    Steve Creek Canyon, southern Ft. Hunter-Liggett MTY     singing male
H 6/7/92    near Ponderosa Camp, Nacimiento River, on Nac-Ferg Rd. MTY     male
H 6/10/92    Tularcitos Creek along Carmel Valley Rd MTY     1st summ male
10/23/93    Big Sur R. mouth MTY     imm (male?)
H 6/18/94    Big Sur R. mouth MTY     singing male (1st-year bd?)
5/27/96    Big Sur R. mouth MTY     singing male
5/28 & 6/17/96    Big Sur R. mouth MTY different singing male; this one bred later with fem Lazuli
9/24/96    Big Sur R. mouth MTY    molting imm male in BSOL nets
H 6/8/97    Big Sur R. mouth MTY     female
H 9/20/98    Big Sur R. mouth MTY      imm
7/10/99    South Fork Wildlife Area, Kern River Reserve KER    male & female on nest (3 eggs); photo'd
11/15/99    Harkins Slough SCZ     imm
9/28/00    Esalen MTY     imm in garden
6/10/01    Windy Hills Open Space SM     2 singing males (one with white belly=1st summer?)

TOP