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Platte River Status: An uncommon migrant and summer resident in the eastern half of the study area; rare and highly local in the west. Indigo bunting is an uncommon summer resident in Lincoln County, present 15 May to 3 August (Tout 1947).

Breeding Range: Uncommon and local summer resident in the Platte River Valley west to Lincoln County. Rosche (1979) considered indigo bunting a common nesting species at the Cedar Point Biological Station, Keith County, during 18 July to 19 August 1977. One was also reported at Kingsley Dam 17 July to 18 August 1978. Indigo bunting x lazuli bunting hybrids have been observed at Cedar Point (Rosche 1979). Short (1961) found indigo buntings along the South Platte River west to Crook, Colorado. Hybrids between indigo and lazuli buntings were found at Hastings, Adams County.

Breeding Population: The estimated breeding population in 1979-80 was 2,500 pairs.

Habitat: We found the highest mean breeding density in river channel islands (3.7 pairs/km²) followed by 1.5 pairs/km² in lowland forest. Indigo bunting is a fairly common nesting species in forest edge habitats in northeastern North Dakota (Faanes and Andrew 1983). Johnsgard (1979) characterized indigo bunting nesting habitat across the Great Plains as relatively open hardwood forest on river floodplains and in uplands. Indigo bunting is an uncommon and local summer resident in riparian thickets throughout western Kansas (Rising 1974). Densities of 737.5 birds/km² in edge shrubs, 586.2/km² along drainage ditches, and 570.7/km² in hedgerows were reported from Illinois by Graber and Graber (1963).

Effect of Habitat Alteration: Indigo bunting has benefited from the establishment of wooded vegetation in the channels of the Platte River system. Overgrazing of the riparian zone can be detrimental to this species through reduction of shrub layer vegetation. Graber and Graber (1963) speculated that in primeval Illinois, indigo bunting was probably not common because of the existence of primary forest and prairie. Timber cutting, however, increased the area of forest edge, greatly enhancing the extent of preferred habitat.

Nesting Data: We have no confirmed records of eggs or young from the study area. Kansas egg dates range from 11 May to 20 August (Johnsgard 1979). The nesting season in North Dakota extends from late May to late August.