50 Nebraskaland • April 2020
MIXED BAG
THE EYE-CATCHING BLACKBIRD
By Joel Jorgensen
A handful of blackbird species are some of the first
migratory birds to arrive in Nebraska and are a sure sign
of the coming spring. Unfortunately, these seemingly
plain black, brown or glossy plumaged birds can be easily
overlooked, but there is one blackbird species that demands
attention. Yellow-headed blackbirds stand out and provide
a flash of color upon their arrival in early April when
the landscape is just beginning to turn green. Similar to
other blackbird species, males migrate earlier in spring than
females. Compact flocks of males sporting vivid buttercup
yellow heads with contrasting bold white wing patches often
number in the hundreds and will move together seamlessly
in single-species flocks. Their preferred habitats include
wetlands, cattle yards and open country.
Yellow-headed blackbirds not only migrate through
Nebraska but also nest locally in the interior of wetlands
that possess standing water and dense stands of cattails
or other emergent vegetation. The earlier migrating males
establish territories prior to the arrival of females. Males
broadcast from their territories by vocalizing an unmusical,
raspy and dizzying buzz that has been described as sounding
phonetically like "kuk – koh-koh-koh – waaaaaaaa."
Although this species' song is unmusical, the sound is
synonymous with a Nebraska marsh in spring. Males are
polygynous and attract a harem of females to their territory.
The largest breeding populations of yellow-headed
blackbirds occur in the wetlands of the Sandhills and the
Rainwater Basin, but this species can breed anywhere in
the state if suitable habitat exists. Most yellow-headed
blackbirds have moved south of Nebraska by November as
this species regularly spends the winter in the Southwest
and in Mexico.
Interestingly, Nebraska claims a little bit of historical
significance with respect to this species. The yellow-headed
blackbird was first described by French ornithologist Charles
Lucien Bonaparte in 1820 from a specimen collected along
the Loup River near Fullerton in Nance County. No doubt
that boldly colored blackbird that ultimately was sacrificed
for science was a little too noticeable for its own good.
Joel Jorgensen is the nongame bird program manager for the
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.
PHOTO
BY
CHRIS
MASADA
