Red-winged blackbird

The red-winged blackbird is one of the first true signs of spring on the prairies. Perched on a cattail or a bare twig, the male flashes a bright red-and-yellow shoulder patch and sings loudly across the marsh. Among the first migrants back to Manitoba wetlands, the male perches on cattails and fence posts to flash bright red and yellow shoulder patches. His loud, gurgling conk-la-ree can be heard from late March or early April.

Males arrive early, claim a patch of wetland, and defend it with song, displays, and plenty of noise. Females are streaky brown and much quieter, and they build their nests low in the cattails. The red patch is hidden when the bird is relaxed and flares when he is calling or challenging a rival. Females are streaky brown and look more like a large sparrow, and a single male may defend a territory shared by several nests.

Here are some of my favourite frames of the male red-winged blackbird, on twigs, cattails, and the edge of the marsh.

Male red-winged blackbird perched on bare red twigs, showing his red and yellow shoulder patch

Photos

  • Male red-winged blackbird gathering nesting material from a marsh edge
  • Male red-winged blackbird calling from a cattail at the edge of a marsh
  • Red-winged blackbird photographed in Manitoba, 1
  • Red-winged blackbird photographed in Manitoba, 2
  • Red-winged blackbird photographed in Manitoba, 3
  • Red-winged blackbird photographed in Manitoba, 4
  • Red-winged blackbird photographed in Manitoba, 5

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