Snow and bad weather always bring a flock of mixed blackbirds. I thought these were all Grackles and Cowbirds.....
....until I saw this one on the left. Any ideas what it is? 1st summer Red-winged Blackbird female? Rusty blackbird? That eye stripe is very obvious and so is the light colored eye.
Another shot of it. I didn't know it was something odd and had to crop this and try to lighten it up.
There seems to be a female Red-winged Blackbird on the left, also...the striped bird.
Mostly Cowbirds, but some Grackles mixed in.
If all of these female Cowbirds hang around, I should have lots of Cowbird babies being raised by other parents next spring.
I keep trying to get some good photos of the Cowbird male, which I think is rather handsome.
So glossy and shiny...even his feet look like "patented leather".
Here the feathers look a bit more iridescent like a Grackle.
And of course any blackbird mix seems to have a few Starlings mixed in.
Ready to go!
....until I saw this one on the left. Any ideas what it is? 1st summer Red-winged Blackbird female? Rusty blackbird? That eye stripe is very obvious and so is the light colored eye.
Another shot of it. I didn't know it was something odd and had to crop this and try to lighten it up.
There seems to be a female Red-winged Blackbird on the left, also...the striped bird.
Mostly Cowbirds, but some Grackles mixed in.
If all of these female Cowbirds hang around, I should have lots of Cowbird babies being raised by other parents next spring.
I keep trying to get some good photos of the Cowbird male, which I think is rather handsome.
So glossy and shiny...even his feet look like "patented leather".
Here the feathers look a bit more iridescent like a Grackle.
And of course any blackbird mix seems to have a few Starlings mixed in.
Ready to go!I'm just glad the blackbirds don't come all the time, even if I am curious about the different kinds. I couldn't afford to feed the huge flocks that travel together.
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12 comments:
Great variety! Last year I had a song sparrow feeding a baby cowbird. It was about 3x her size!
Wish I could help, I tend to find blackbird identification tricky too when they don't look exactly as shown in the field guides. Mystery Birds, that's what they are. :-) I look forward to seeing any answers.
Looks like you've got some Rusty Blackbirds there Mary! A very sought after prize in the birder world! Listen carfully if you see them again...they sound like squeeky doors! They are winter visitors in your area. Hope you see them often.
How cool to find a new bird in your yard!I hope they stick around for you to get more photos!phylliso
You got some really good pictures of these birds, Mary!!
Sorry,I can't help with the ID.I do like that last picture.Looks like he is showing off his new coat.
Blessings,Ruth
these are great pictures. i know what you mean about feeding those blackbirds. they like to be aggressive and not allow the smaller birds any seeds. it makes me mad sometimes but then i remember they have to eat too. hope all is well your way. have a great day.
I really like the pictures of the male cowbird that you got. It is a very elegant-looking bird.
Hi Mary.. Well thats' a real debonair looking Cowbird....black patent leather and all!!
When the blackbirds and grackles come here,which won't be for awhile, I call them the clean up crew , because they eat up whatever the other birds didn't get all winter!!
Hi Mary, You have a good variety of birds --most of which I don't see much around here. You got some great close-up pictures of the Cowbird. I saw them around here a little last summer --but not much.
Thanks for sharing..
Hugs,
Betsy
That one sure is an odd looking bird...I have never noticed anything like it.
Got a question for you...don't know why I haven't thought before to ask. When you go to Bluegrass and the places you go, do you see a lot of red-winged blackbirds? And if you do, or even if you don't, do you ever see flocks of little black birds...maybe half the size of a red-winged blackbird and they have a red stripe on their wings also. They are never very close, so never have the opportunity to photograph one...I think their bill is shorter, too, but not sure.
I think any of the Blackbirds are hard to photograph in the snow. I have tons here too, but so far they have left the feeders alone. I suspect it might be because Mr. Cooper's hawk is still lurking!
B.
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