Red-Winged Blackbird

Appearance:

Length: 6.7-9.1 in
Weight: 1.1-2.7 oz
Wingedspan: 12.2-15.8 in

A stocky, broad-shouldered blackbird with a slender, conical bill and a medium-length tail. Red-winged Blackbirds often show a hump-backed silhouette while perched; males often sit with their tail slightly flared. Male Red-winged Blackbirds are hard to mistake. They're an even glossy black with red-and-yellow shoulder badges. Females are crisply streaked and dark brownish overall, paler on the breast, and often show a whitish eyebrow.

Habitat:

Breeds in swampy areas and marshes and along edges of fields; may also be found feeding in agricultural fields with mixed flocks of starlings, cowbirds, and grackles.

Behavior:

Male Red-winged Blackbirds do everything they can to get noticed, sitting on high perches and belting out their conk-la-ree! song all day long. Females stay lower, skulking through vegetation for food and quietly weaving together their remarkable nests. In winter Red-winged Blackbirds gather in huge flocks to eat grains with other blackbird species and starlings.