Red-winged Blackbird

The Red-winged Blackbird is one of the most abundant and familiar birds of North American wetlands, easily recognized by the male's glossy black plumage set off by bright red shoulder patches (epaulets) bordered with yellow or buff. Females look entirely different from males, being heavily streaked brown overall with a pointed bill and a pale eyebrow stripe, an appearance that can cause them to be mistaken for a large sparrow rather than recognized as the same species as the male.

Males are conspicuous and vocal, perching on cattails, reeds, or fence wires to sing and display their shoulder patches, both to attract mates and to warn off rival males from their territory.

Key Field Marks

• Male: glossy black overall with red shoulder patches bordered by yellow or buff
• Female: heavily streaked brown, sparrow-like, with a pointed bill and pale eyebrow stripe
• Males often show only a thin yellow line when patches are concealed at rest
• Conical, sharply pointed bill typical of blackbirds

Similar Species

• Tricolored Blackbird (western U.S.): male very similar but has a darker red patch bordered by white (not yellow); found mainly in California.
• Brown-headed Cowbird (female): smaller, plainer grayish-brown, without the Red-winged Blackbird female's bold streaking pattern.
• Common Grackle: male is larger with a long, keel-shaped tail and iridescent (not red-patched) plumage, easily distinguished from the male Red-winged Blackbird.

Habitat

Red-winged Blackbirds are strongly tied to wetlands, especially marshes with cattails and reeds, but also use wet meadows, roadside ditches, and agricultural fields, particularly outside the breeding season.

Range

They are found across nearly all of the United States, Canada, and parts of Mexico and Central America, among the most widespread and numerous birds on the continent.

Migration

Northern populations are migratory, moving south in winter and often forming enormous mixed flocks with other blackbird species, while populations in milder climates may be year-round residents.

Behavior

Males are highly territorial during the breeding season, often defending several females' nests within a marsh territory, perching prominently and displaying their red shoulder patches while calling; outside the breeding season, Red-winged Blackbirds gather in large, sometimes massive flocks.

Voice

The classic song is a gurgling, mechanical-sounding "conk-la-ree," often given with the wings and tail spread and shoulder patches flared; females have their own distinct chattering calls.

Feeding

They eat mainly insects during the breeding season and switch to seeds and grain in fall and winter, often foraging in large flocks in agricultural fields.

Nesting & Breeding

Females build a cup nest woven among marsh vegetation like cattails and reeds, low over water or in wet grassy areas, typically laying 3-4 eggs. The species is polygynous, with a single male often mating with and defending the nests of several females within his territory.