Red-winged Blackbird

Left: male Red-winged Blackbird. Middle: juvenile Red-winged Blackbird. Right: female Red-winged Blackbird.

NPS Photo / Rachel Ames

Size: 6.5-9”
Description: Males are glossy black with red-and-yellow shoulder badges. Females and juveniles are brownish overall with pale streaks and a yellowish wash around the beak.
Migratory Status: Late spring and summer residents of Rocky Mountain National Park.
Habitat: Live in marshes, wet meadows and wooded riparian areas to 9,000 feet and occasionally 11,000 feet.
Diet: Eat a variety of insects and seeds and often forage by prying at the base of aquatic plants.

 

• Red-winged Blackbird (song and call)

  
  

  Red-winged Blackbird song and call recorded on the Cub Lake Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that an American Robin, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Wilson's Snipe, House Wren and the buzz of a hummingbird flying by can also be heard in the recording.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  06/24/2015

  Audio Transcript

  Transcript due 4/1/2025

 

• Red-winged Blackbird (song and call)

  
  

  Red-winged Blackbird song and call recorded in Moraine Park in Rocky Mountain National Park. Note that Western Chorus Frogs and the buzz of a hummingbird flying by can also be heard in the recording.

  Credit / Author:

  J. Job

  Date created:

  05/18/2016

  Audio Transcript

  Transcript due 4/1/2025