Blackbirds and Allies Info

Red-winged Blackbird

can hide or expose bright spots on their wings depending on the situation (sneaking around vs defending their territory)

Red-winged Blackbird

marsh bird who attracts multiple females to his territory

Red-winged Blackbird

attract females with their large territory size, resources, vocalizations, and postures

Red-winged Blackbird

nests are made of cattails or other marsh vegetation

nest is a woven basket above water level

female incubate eggs

male defends the nest

Red-winged Blackbird

Problem:

marsh habitat loss

Eastern Meadowlark

ground nesters in open pastures and meadows

Eastern Meadowlark

males call and display from fence posts

Eastern Meadowlark

omnivorous, eats mostly insects like grasshoppers, caterpillars, grubs, etc., but also weed seeds, spilled corn, and wild fruits

Eastern Meadowlark

males display their chest to other males to claim territory and to females for courting

Eastern Meadowlark

hearing their song means “spring is here!”

Eastern Meadowlark

polygynous

males typically have 2 mates at a time

Eastern Meadowlark

Problem:

Prairie and grasslands are declining in the eastern U.S.

Common Grackle

mostly seed eaters, particularly corn and rice

common at suburban feeders

eat beetles, caterpillars, crustaceans, spiders, amphibians, other birds, and mice in summer

Common Grackle

keel on upper mandible to saw open acorns

Common Grackle

monogamous

Common Grackle

often migrates with other blackbirds, cowbirds, and starlings

Common Grackle

nuisance species in some farming areas

Common Grackle

will follow plows to catch invertebrates and mice

steal worms from robins

pick leeches off turtles

wade in water to catch fish

Common Grackle

let ants crawl over them to get the formic acid from their stings to get rid of parasites

Common Grackle

when courting males fluff up, fly with their tail in a V-shape, and give a short scraping song

Common Grackle

female build the nest and choose the nest site

males help make repairs

rarely nest in anything other than trees; prefer conifers

female incubate

both parents feed their nestlings, mostly insects

Common Grackle

nuisance but eat pesky insects

Brown-headed Cowbird

interspecific brood parasite

focus on nests near forest edges

Brown-headed Cowbird

forest fragmentation has benefited this species brood success

Brown-headed Cowbird

never make their own nests

lay one egg in a hosts nest that they raise as their own because they can’t tell the difference between their own babies and this one

Brown-headed Cowbird

females put all their energy into egg-laying and lay up to three dozen eggs every summer