Sunday, May 31, 2015

Yellow-headed Blackbird

If you're ever in a freshwater marshy area, and you hear something that sounds like a rusty gate being opened, don't be surprised when you find out the noise is coming from a Yellow-headed Blackbird, not a gate! The Yellow-headed Blackbird is one of my favorite wetland birds, they're entertaining to watch, beautiful birds and where you find one there's most likely a whole bunch more close by.


*Catching Mayflies, pretty entertaining*
Yellow-headed Blackbirds nest in large colonies that can include hundreds of individuals and sometimes even other species of Blackbirds. The males are easily recognized with their bright yellow heads, black bodies and white strips on their wings. Females lack the white strips and overall have a duller color with yellow on their faces, neck and chest (the whole head is not completely yellow). As previously mentioned their call has been compared to the noise a rusty gate makes when opened. I'm not a huge fan of that comparison, but their call in definitely unique, and one that is easily recognized.

The Yellow-headed Blackbird's diet consists of mainly seeds and insects, the largest portion being seeds. In the United States, this bird can be found in marshy areas in most of the west and central parts of the country. During the nesting season, male birds can often be seen displaying their colors and heard voicing their call repeatedly around the colony. This is their way of saying "back off" as they guard their nest(s) and female(s). Bird watching is one of my favorite activities, and Yellow-headed Blackbirds are one of my favorites to observe. Keep an eye out next time you're by a lake or pond or marshy area, you may just run into some!

1 comment:

  1. The Yellow-headed Blackbird is one of my favorite marshy birds too! I love their distinctive call and coloring. They also have fun personalities. Thanks for posting these awesome photos!

    ReplyDelete