Breeding males are bright blue above with bold white wingbars, white belly, and orange breast. Sing from tops of shrubs during the breeding season. Females are plain buffy brown with faint wingbars and slightly brighter breast. Never shows faint streaks below like female Indigo Bunting often does; throat not as contrastingly white. Found in shrubby, sometimes arid habitats, favoring bushy hillsides and slopes. Occasionally visits feeders.