RFW Bird-watching Resources

  Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies

Yellow-headed Blackbird

(Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: yhbl
Size: Medium

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Female   Rio Arriba County

   Taos County
Photo by: Tom Jackman

   RFW Corridor
Photo by: John Lay
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Yellow-headed Blackbird


Season - Abundance Status:
Spring-Fall Transient - Uncommon

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Yellow-headed Blackbird at xeno-canto.org

Western Meadowlark

(Sturnella neglecta)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: weme
Size: Medium

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   Maxwell Lakes


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Western Meadowlark


Season - Abundance Status:
Spring-Fall Transient - Uncommon
Small numbers stay the summer and breed.

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Western Meadowlark at xeno-canto.org

Bullock’s Oriole

(Icterus bullockii)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: buor
Size: Medium

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   Rio Arriba County

   

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Bullock’s Oriole


Season - Abundance Status:
Migrant Summer Breeder - Uncommon

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Bullock’s Oriole at xeno-canto.org

Red-winged Blackbird

(Agelaius phoeniceus)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: rwbl
Size: Small

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   Rio Fernando Wetlands

   

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Red-winged Blackbird


Season - Abundance Status:
Year-round Bird - Common

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Red-winged Blackbird at xeno-canto.org

Brown-headed Cowbird

(Molothrus ater)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: bhco
Size: Small

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Adult Male   Orilla Verde

Adult Female   Orilla Verde

Juvenile   Orilla Verde
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Brown-headed Cowbird


Season - Abundance Status:
Migrant Summer Breeder - Less Common

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Brown-headed Cowbird at xeno-canto.org

Brewer’s Blackbird

(Euphagus cyanocephalus)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: brbl
Size: Medium

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Female   Costilla
Photo by: Bob Friedrichs

Adult Male   Rio Arriba County

Adult Male   RFW Corridor
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Brewer’s Blackbird


Season - Abundance Status:
Migrant Summer Breeder - Uncommon

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Brewer’s Blackbird at xeno-canto.org

Common Grackle

(Quiscalus quiscula)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: cogr
Size: Medium

Click Range Map to Enlarge
   RFW Corridor
Photo by: John Lay

   RFW Corridor
Photo by: John Lay

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Common Grackle


Season - Abundance Status:
Migrant Summer Breeder - Common

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Common Grackle at xeno-canto.org

Great-tailed Grackle

(Quiscalus mexicanus)

Family: Icteridae
Common Family Grouping:
Icterids: Blackbirds, Orioles and their Allies
4-Letter Species Code: gtgr
Size: Large

Click Range Map to Enlarge
   Arizona
Photo by: Bob Friedrichs

   Rio Fernando Wetlands

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Great-tailed Grackle


Season - Abundance Status:
Year-round Bird - Less Common

Link to USGS Site with more information: USGS

Hear sounds of Great-tailed Grackle at xeno-canto.org

Range data provided by Infonatura/Natureserve. Ridgely, R. S., T. F. Alnutt, T. Brooks, D. K. McNicol, D. W. Mehlman, B. E. Young, and J. R. Zook. 2005 Digital Distribution Maps of the Birds of the Western Hemisphere, version 2.1 NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia, USA

eBird and CBC Graphs created with Google Charts: https://developers.google.com/chart

Data for CBC Graph: National Audubon Society (2020). The Christmas Bird Count Historical Results Online. Available http://www.christmasbirdcount.org November, 2020

Data for eBird Graph: eBird. 2021. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance. eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Available: http://www.ebird.org. (Accessed: January 7, 2021).