The lark bunting
Look in the foothills & mountain valleys of Colorado, and you’ll find the state flower – the Rocky Mountain columbine. The state tree is nearby – the blue spruce. As is the state animal, the Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep. But you’ll have to look east to find Colorado’s state bird: that’s the Lark Bunting. A sparrow-sized bird that keeps to plains and prairies, the Lark Bunting is, for most of the year, a dusty brown. In the breeding season, however, the male of the species puts on “formal wear” of sorts, turning all black except for bright white wing patches and tailfeather tips, and he calls for a mate with a song that sounds like a medley of many others. Far from the mountains, look and listen for Colorado’s state bird, the “troubadour of the plains,” the Lark Bunting.
About Colorado Postcards
Colorado Postcards are snapshots of our colorful state in sound. They give brief insights into our people and places, our flora and fauna, and our past and present, from every corner of Colorado. See more postcards.
