They winter from southern Canada south. They breed in the summer in southeastern Alaska, Canada and the U. S., south to Central America.
They are found in marshy areas, grassy fields and pastures.
Males have a black body with a bright red patch on each shoulder. Females are mottled black-ish brown.
They travel in large groups. They have a distinctive, loud call.
They eat seeds, grains, and insects.
Male red-winged blackbirds defend their territory where more than a dozen females can be nesting. They build nests in the spring in the cattails above the water of woven marsh grass or leaves filled with mud and lined with grass. The females lay 3-5 pale blue-green eggs with dark streaks.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vetebrata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Icteridae
Genus: Agelaius
Species: A. phoeniceus
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Amsel, Sheri. "Blackbird (Red-winged)" Exploring Nature Educational Resource ©2005-2024. March 25, 2024
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