How To Attract Indigo Buntings? (Video)

 If you're a bird lover, you're probably familiar with the indigo bunting, one of the bluest birds in North America. The male indigo bunting boasts vibrant blue plumage with accents of black while the females are a duller color. These beautiful birds are abundant across the United States and Canada and prefer grassy fields, open meadows, and parks. With the right conditions, they might even spend time in your gardens and lawn. Here are 7 ways you can attract indigo buntings to your home.

Offer the Right Foods

Indigo buntings enjoy a variety of foods, including white proso millet, black oil sunflower seeds, Nyjer, and hulled sunflower seeds. Scatter the seeds on the ground, as indigo buntings forage for food on the ground for much of their time, particularly during breeding season.

Keep Your Feeders Stocked

During late fall, indigo buntings begin their migration south to spend the winter in Florida, Mexico, and Central America. During their migration, they are more likely to look to backyard feeders for a ready supply of seeds. Keep your feeders in place and fully stocked with millet and sunflower seeds for the indigo buntings.

Provide Clean Water

Indigo buntings need access to clean, fresh water. When they find a good water source, they tend to remember it and will visit it again and again. Make your garden a place the indigo buntings want to return to by maintaining a bird bath or other water feature.

Include Seed-Producing Plants

Since indigo buntings' favorite foods are seeds, add landscaping plants to your garden that will produce an abundance of seeds. Sunflowers, daisies, purple coneflowers, black-eyed Susans, asters, and marigolds are all seeds that will attract indigo buntings.

Create a Natural Habitat

The best way to invite indigo buntings and other birds to your yard is to create a garden that mimics the birds' natural habitat. Stick with only native plant species and resist the urge to use chemical pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers. Include tall grasses, hedges, and bushes that can offer shelter and protection for the birds.

Include Berry-Producers

Although indigo buntings eat mostly seeds, they also enjoy occasional berries, as well as insects like grasshoppers, aphids, and beetles. Include berry-producers like shrubs and vines in your garden to attract indigo buntings.

Provide Nesting Materials

Indigo buntings build their nests in low shrubs and hedges, just a few feet off the ground. If you add these to your landscaping, you will greatly increase the chances of an indigo bunting mama building her nest in your yard. Make sure your yard has plenty of materials for the mother indigo bunting to use when constructing her nest, including spider webs. She uses spider webs to hold together the grasses, leaves, and plant stems with which she builds her nest.

Attracting indigo buntings to your yard takes a little effort, but it's worth it to have these beautiful birds as visitors. Offer the right foods, keep your feeders stocked, provide clean water, include seed-producing plants and berry-producers, create a natural habitat, and provide nesting materials. With these tips and tricks, you'll be able to enjoy the company of these lovely birds in your own backyard.

Attracting indigo buntings to your yard or garden is a rewarding experience that requires a little planning and effort. By providing the right seeds, water sources, and landscaping, you can create a haven for these beautiful birds and enjoy watching them all season long.

Remember to stick with native plants and avoid using chemicals in your garden to help protect the environment and the birds themselves. With a little patience and dedication, you can create a paradise for indigo buntings and other birds in your backyard.