Brewer's Blackbird

Brewer's Blackbird, male

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Brewer's Blackbird, female

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A shiny blue-green blackbird, the Brewer's Blackbird is common in agricultural and suburban habitats of the West. It has taken advantage of human modifications of the environment to expand its range eastward.

Description

• Medium-sized songbird.
• Medium-long tail.
• Bill thin and pointed.
• Male iridescent black with purple and green highlights, female dull gray-brown.

• Size: 20-25 cm (8-10 in)
• Wingspan: 37 cm (15 in)
• Weight: 47-67 g (1.66-2.37 ounces)

Sex Differences

Male iridescent black. Female dull gray-brown and slightly smaller.

Sound

Song a harsh whirring gurgling "schl-r-r-up." Call a sharp "tschup."

Conservation Status

Widespread and abundant. Not considered threatened, but declines noticed in parts of range.

Other Names

Quiscale des Brewer (French)

Cool Facts

• The Brewer's Blackbird spread its range eastward from western Minnesota in the 20th century, taking advantage of human-produced changes in landscape. Where it overlaps with the Common Grackle, the blackbird takes over the open grassy areas, while the grackle dominates in urban and suburban areas.

• The Brewer's Blackbird nests in compact colonies, numbering from a few pairs to more than one hundred. Occasionally a pair will nest solitarily away from a colony. In the colony a female (sometimes aided by a male) defends a small area directly around her nest site.

• Within a colony most females choose the same kind of nest site, indicating that females follow the lead of the first nest builders. A colony may change its nest preference from year to year, building all nests in small bushes one year, and in tall trees the next.

Sources used to construct this page:

Martin, S. G. 2002. Brewer's Blackbird (Euphagus cyanocephalus). In The Birds of North America, No. 616 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.