The Rusty Blackbird, Euphagus carolinus, is a medium-sized blackbird, closely related to grackles (Rusty Grakle is an older name for the species).
Adults have a pointed bill and a pale yellow eye. They have black plumage; the female is greyer. "Rusty" refers to the brownish winter plumage. They resemble the western member of the same genus, the Brewer's Blackbird; however, this bird has a longer bill and the male's head is iridescent green. The s...
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The Rusty Blackbird, Euphagus carolinus, is a medium-sized blackbird, closely related to grackles (Rusty Grakle is an older name for the species).
Adults have a pointed bill and a pale yellow eye. They have black plumage; the female is greyer. "Rusty" refers to the brownish winter plumage. They resemble the western member of the same genus, the Brewer's Blackbird; however, this bird has a longer bill and the male's head is iridescent green. The song resembles the grating of a rusty hinge.
Their breeding habitat is wet temperate coniferous forests and muskeg across Canada and Alaska. The cup nest is located in a tree or dense shrub, usually over water. Birds often nest at the edge of ponds/wetland complexes and travel large distances to feed at the waters edge. Emerging dragonflies and their larvae are important food items during the summer.
These birds migrate to the eastern and southeastern United States, into parts of the Grain Belt, sometimes straying into Mexico.
They forage on...
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