Blue Grosbeak (Passerina caerulea) [XC489429]
by Phoenix Birder from Cache Creek Settling Basin, Yolo County, CA, United States (song)
Blue Grosbeak (Passerina caerulea) [XC625498]
by Manuel Grosselet from Leslie Canyon National Wildlife Refuge, Cochise County, Arizona, United States (dawn song)
Subspecies
Genus sometimes placed in family Emberizidae. This species formerly placed in monotypic genus Guiraca. Subspecies deltarhyncha intergrades with lazula in Guatemala and the former is rather poorly differentiated, and sometimes synonymized with eurhyncha.
Proposed subspecies mesophila (Texas) included within nominate.
The following 7 subspecies are recognised:
salicaria (Grinnell, 1911) - Breeds south-western USA (central and southern California, west-central Nevada and south-western Arizona) and extreme north-western Mexico (north-western Baja California); migrates to southern Baja California and western Mexico (southern Sonora south to Guerrero and Morelos).
interfusa (Dwight & Griscom, 1927) - Breeds western USA (southern South Dakota south to Arizona and New Mexico) and northern Mexico (central Sinaloa, Durango and northern Coahuila); migrates to western Mexico (Sonora and Durango) south to Honduras.
caerulea (Linnaeus, 1758) - Breeds eastern USA from Kansas, Kentucky, south-eastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey south to central and southern Texas, southern Louisiana, central Alabama and central Florida; migrates to region from eastern and southern Mexico south to Panama.
eurhyncha (Coues, 1874) - Central and southern Mexico from southern Tamaulipas south to Oaxaca.
deltarhyncha (van Rossem, 1938) - Pacific slope in Mexico from southern Sonora south to Guerrero.
chiapensis (Nelson, 1898) - Southern Mexico (eastern Oaxaca and Chiapas) east to southern Guatemala.
lazula (Lesson, R, 1842) - Southern Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras south through Pacific drainage to north-western Costa Rica.
BirdLife International Species Factsheet