The Red-winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus, is known to many North Americans because it breeds all over the continent except in the far north and is one of the most common birds. It’s the male of the species that we know: the female is much less striking.
Identifying the Red-winged Blackbird
The male Red-winged Blackbird is unmistakable. It's glossy black with bright red patches, or epaulettes, at the top of the wings. Most have a band of yellow at the bottom of the epaulette. Males sometimes hide these bright patches and appear completely black. During the breeding season, males characteristically sit on top of a cattail or on another high perch and sing, making them a familiar marsh bird.
Females of Agelaius phoeniceus are much less obvious and they spend time foraging in vegetation or incubating eggs, so they are not seen as often. The female is brown with a streaky breast and looks much like a large sparrow. It may be easiest to identify when seen foraging in a flock of mixed males and females during the breeding season.
Outside the breeding season, Red-winged Blackbirds congregate and migrate in flocks of all male or all female birds. Watch for flocks in grain fields, and feed lots. Males sometimes visit feeders in early spring and late fall.
What Do Red-winged Blackbirds Eat?
Red-winged Blackbirds eat mostly grain and other seeds, and wild fruit, including berries. They also take invertebrates, such as insects, spiders, caterpillars, and snails. During the winter months, large flocks of these birds visit cleared fields for the grain left behind and sometimes take grain piled as livestock food.
Red-winged Blackbird Nesting and Breeding
Male Red-winged Blackbirds arrive to claim breeding territory in late winter or early spring. The females arrive later, and up to fifteen mate with each male and nest in his territory.
A typical Red-winged Blackbird nest is attached to a cattail stem over water. It is built of woven plant material and lined with fine soft grass. Sometimes, the nest is built over dry ground, in a plant growing close to the water, or in low brush.
Females usually lay a clutch of four eggs and can raise three broods in a single breeding season. The female incubates the eggs for almost two weeks, and young leave the nest after another nine to twelve days.
Interesting Facts about Red-Winged Blackbirds
Because it’s so common, A. phoeniceus has been well studied. Researchers have learned some curious things:
- Red-winged Blackbirds sometime hop backwards while foraging on the ground.
- Fall and winter flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds often include less common birds of other species, so they are worth careful observation.
- Though migratory, these birds don’t go very far. They are present throughout most of the United States during the winter and some go as far south as Costa Rica.
- Occasionally, Red-winged Blackbirds attack people if they feel the nest is threatened.
- Adult birds don’t swim, but the young can swim a short distance. This allows fledglings that fall from the nest into water to avoid drowning.
It’s thought that there are about two hundred million Red-winged Blackbirds in North America, though they may be decreasing, primarily due to loss of the wetland habitat they require for breeding.
Sources
Atlas of Bird Migration. Elphick, Jonathan ed. Buffalo: Firefly Books, 2007.
Birding in Metro Halifax. Stevens, Clarence. Halifax: Nimbus; 1996.
Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds. Perrins, Christopher ed. Buffalo: Firefly Books, 2003
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus). Hinterland Who’s Who: Bird Fact Sheets.
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