Red-winged Blackbird

Signs of spring continue in many places this month, and one of those is the return of red-winged blackbirds, Agelaius phoeniceus.  Males are a glossy black with bright red shoulder patches bordered in yellow called epaulets.  Females are dark, streaky brown with an orange-ish face and chin and faint pale orange epaulets.  Members of the blackbird family, they have stocky, rounded wings, a short tail, and a thick beak.

Red-winged blackbirds winter in Mexico and migrate in spring to the United States and southern Canada.  Wetlands, including marsh, wet meadow, and heavily vegetated shores of small ponds, are their preferred habitat.   Nests are built in wet, brushy areas.  They are cup-shaped, woven from twigs and grass, and attached to straight, vertical shoots near the water’s surface.  They are held together with mud and lined with fine grasses for comfort and insulation.

Males arrive first in the spring and select a territory.  They have a wide variety of songs for attracting mates and warning other males to stay out of their territory.  Many blackbird species have the ability to learn and incorporate new songs into the repertoire.  Males use many convoluted flight sequences that show their bright red and yellow epaulets as warning signs for both competitors and potential predators.   Experiments studying the red shoulder patch shows that birds use them to establish a rank in the social order of birds in the area.  A bird defending its own territory will display the whole epaulet, whereas a bird searching for food outside its established range will keep the red shoulder partially concealed, so as to not provoke an attack. 

Females choose their mates, based in part on the amount of territory a male can hold and defend and by habitat quality.  If there is enough vegetation to support multiple nest sites and insect populations for food, this is a clear indication of a highly desirable breeding partner and more than one female may choose to mate with the same male.  Timing of egg laying is tied to availability of food.  Females will have two broods each year, with three to four eggs in each.

Red-winged blackbirds are extremely bold birds.  They are not afraid to attack predators much larger than themselves.  Any potential threat close to a nest site is subject to warning calls, displays showing the red epaulets, and dive bombing from a male willing to use his beak as a weapon.  Threats may include crows, hawks, raccoons, and people. 

The red-winged blackbird is one of the most prolific species in the U.S., and yet their populations have declined an estimated 30% in the last 50 years.  Some of this is due to intentional poisoning of large flocks that have often been perceived as a threat to corn and wheat granaries.  Urban development continues to contribute to loss of habitat.  Other causes for this decline are climate-based including late spring cold snaps that may kill off expected insect populations used for food and additional acreage under threat of wildfires due to warming temperatures.

In spring, the males sing several melodies followed by their signature drawn-out, raspy trill.  If you have any wetland areas nearby, visit these to observe their courting and breeding behaviors or attract them to your backyards with their favorite foods.  They generally feed on the ground or from a platform feeder.  In early spring, they like sunflower seeds, cracked corn, millet, oats and peanut hearts.  As insect populations arrive, birds will move into wetland areas to lay eggs and raise their young.