The Colorado State Bird
Is a Big...er Little Surprise

So, what is the Colorado state bird?

Something as majestic as the mountains the state is famed for?

An eagle? A hawk? A falcon?

Would you believe it's a sparrow?

Me neither. Surprised the heck out of me.

Don't get me wrong, I love sparrows. They're great fun to watch popping around our yard to feeders or on the ground looking for food. They're challenging to identify, in many cases, especially the females!

Okay, quit holding your breath. Your face is turning blue.

The Colorado state bird is the lark bunting. Or in Latin, calamospiza melanocorys.

Only six inches long, this little bird actually summers on the prairie and plains regions of the eastern part of the state, and not in the mountainous regions at all, though it migrates through on it's way to wintering grounds.

It spends winters in southern New Mexico, Arizona and Texas, and on south into Mexico.

Though mainly a bird living in the Rocky Mountain states (and Canada), there have been sightings of it from east coast to west coast, north to Minnesota and south to Florida.

A mid-size sparrow, the males, when in breeding plumage, are mostly black with a bright white patch on the wings.

Females, as most female bird species, are much less noticeable, but no less subtly beautiful with their streaky dark brown patches over lighter brown or tan, and like the males, a broad white patch on the wings.

The state bird of Colorado nests on the ground. Always a precarious place to nest. Especially as people keep destroying natural habitat. When they do breed, they lay 3-6 light blue eggs, which hatch within 11-12 days. The precocious young fledge in just over a week. Guess if you're going to start life on the ground, you better learn to fly fast!

What about food, you say? How about some insects with your seeds? Obviously, summer is insect season. Wintertime, they may eat more seeds than insects. Good thing not to be too picky.

According to the information I found, they tend to flock along roadsides. Maybe I've seen them and not realized it.

So, I hope that answers your questions about the Colorado state bird. I'm going to try to go somewhere they're commonly seen and get some pictures! See you there!

Want to read more about birding in the area? Click any of the links below to go to our other bird pages:

Colorado Bird Houses
Wild Birds of Colorado
Bird Watching in Colorado
Colorado Bird Watching Clubs
Colorado Bird Watching 2
Colorado Upland Bird
Birds of Colorado 2




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