male Red-winged Blackbird

Another early spring returning migrant visitor in our feeder area recently was this male Red-winged Blackbird. And although these photos were taken yesterday our first sighting of Red-winged Blackbirds this year was on March 14th. Other years first spring sightings of Red-winged Blackbirds in March were on: March 22nd, 2001, on the 7th, 2002, the 23rd, 2003 and on the 12th in 2004. When feeding, the red-orange covets of this bird are often not fully visible. The small photos to the right, taken previous years, shows the distinctive 'red epaulets' of a male Red-winged Blackbird fully displayed.

You can view photos of a female Red-winged Blackbird at: http://naturetales.blogspot.com/2006/11/female-red-winged-blackbirds.html