The indigo bird is a sparrow-like bird. The male is ciad in deep blue, with wings and tail black margined with blue. The female is brown—under parts whitish. It nests in bushes near the ground from the Mississippi valley eastward. Careless observers may mistake it for a bluebird. The male is a fine songster.
The indigo bird breeds as far north as Nova Scotia, but migrates to South America in the autumn. It frequents open spaces on the edge of forests.