A medium blackbird with distinctive bright yellow head.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The yellow-headed blackbird is a medium-sized blackbird with a yellow head.
Source: Wikipedia — Yellow-headed blackbird Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Male black-bodied with a brilliant yellow head and breast and a white wing patch; female smaller, dusky brown with a duller yellow face and throat.
Similar species. Red-winged Blackbird male has red shoulders; the Yellow-headed's yellow head is unmistakable in males, and females show the yellowish breast.
Voice. A bizarre, strangled, grating buzz like a rusty hinge; harsh 'check' call.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Insects, seeds, fruits depending on species.
Behavior. A large blackbird of western freshwater marshes that nests in dense colonies over water; males display with a strained, mechanical song and dominate the deeper-water reeds.
§ Range
Western North America
§ Habitat
Marshes
§ Threats
Wetland loss.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the yellow-headed blackbird is currently classified as Least Concern.
§ What helps
Support wetland conservation.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Yellow-headed blackbird
- www.allaboutbirds.org — authoritative profile of Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
- IUCN Red List — search for Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
§ Sources cited
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology — All About Birds
- National Audubon Society
- iNaturalist
- IUCN Red List
