Tricolored Blackbird

Agelaius tricolorOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Blackbirds and Orioles (Icteridae)

General

Tricolored Blackbird: Medium-sized blackbird that is mostly black with a glossy blue tint overall. Shoulder patches are bright red and bordered with white. Female and juvenile have thickly brown-streaked upperparts and breasts, brown bellies and undertails, and pale eyebrows.

Range and Habitat

Tricolored Blackbird: Breeds in California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, and Baja California. Oregon birds migrate south in winter; California birds are resident. Preferred habitats include annual grasslands, wet and dry vernal pools, and other seasonal wetlands.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"on-ke-kaaangh", "check"

Interesting Facts

The Tricolored Blackbird was classified as endangered in 2006 by BirdLife International.

The majority of their population nest in a small number of large colonies. This is similar to the habits of the Carolina Parakeet, Passenger Pigeon and Great Auk-all extinct colonial breeders.

In the past decade their population has declined by more than 40%.

A group of blackbirds has many collective nouns, including a "cloud", "cluster", and "merl" of blackbirds.

Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Tricolored Blackbird

Tricolored Blackbird: Medium-sized blackbird that is mostly black with a glossy blue tint overall. Shoulder patches are bright red and bordered with white. Lives in flocks year round.Feeds on insects, spiders, caterpillars, and seeds from weeds and grains. Strong direct flight on rapid wing beats.

● Song: "on-ke-kaaangh", "check"

● Foraging & Feeding: Tricolored Blackbird: Feeds on a variety of insects, other invertebrates, and seeds. Forages and roosts in large flocks in winter.

● Breeding & nesting: Tricolored Blackbird: Three to four pale blue-green eggs with fine dark lines or spots are laid in a deep cup nest woven from grass, leaves, and mud, lined with fine grass, and bound to plant stems up to 6 feet above the water or ground. Incubation ranges from 11 to 13 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Tricolored Blackbird: Red-winged Blackbird has a yellow, not white, shoulder patch border.

Flight Pattern

Strong swift direct flight on rapidly beating wings.

● Range & Habitat: Tricolored Blackbird: Breeds in California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, and Baja California. Oregon birds migrate south in winter; California birds are resident. Preferred habitats include annual grasslands, wet and dry vernal pools, and other seasonal wetlands.

^BreedingPolygamous, Colonial

^PopulationCommon to abundant

^MigrationSome migrate

^Weight2.4 Ounces

Field Guide to Birds of North America