ICTERID^ 



247 



The Yellow-headed Blackbird has been called 

 the iieau lirumniel of the Ictcridic family, lie 

 dresses in a glossy black coat, and over his head, 

 around his neck, and down on his chest he wears 

 a rich yellow mantle. On each shoulder he dis- 

 plays a large, showy epaulette of white. Indi- 

 viduals have straggled as far east as W'atertown, 

 Mass., and there is a record of one specimen 

 taken in Florida ; but the Yellow-heads are essen- 

 tially birds of the western ])rairics and marshes, 

 where they frequently associate with the Red- 

 winged Blackbirds and the Cowbirds, though 

 the flocks may not actually intermingle. Their 

 strongly developed gregarious instinct shows es- 

 pecially in their breeding habits, for large colo- 

 nies of the birds often nest in close proximity to 

 one another. 



The Yellow-head's plumage is so striking and 

 distinctive in its color contrasts that the identifi- 

 cation of the bird ought to be easy for anybody. 

 Like other members of its family the bird walks, 

 when on the ground ; indeed its gait is a rather 

 pompous strut, and there is a suggestion of in- 

 solent superiority in the bird's manner which adds 



to the a])i)ropriateness of its nickname. Its only 

 notes are hoarse chuckles and s(|ueaks, all pro- 

 duced as if the effort caused discomfort, if not 

 actual pain. 



The young have lusty appetites, and they 

 present a comical picture when they are able 

 to leave the nest : they grasp a reed with each 

 foot, and the weight of their bodies forces the 

 reeds apart, so that the youngsters assume a sort 

 of spread-eagle pose. But this, however, does 

 not prevent them from keeijing their mouths wide 

 open meanwhile, nor does it hush their constant 

 clamor for food. 



The Yellow-headed Blackbird must be placed 

 among the birds of doubtful usefulness. Agri- 

 culturists justly complain about tliis bird. It 

 visits grain fields, especially oats and wheat, in 

 large flocks and eats enough of the crop to cause 

 serious loss. In its favor, however, is the eating 

 of insects harmful to vegetation. These consti- 

 tute about 30 per cent, of its food and are mainly 

 beetles, grasshoppers, and caterpillars. The 

 army-worm not infre(iucntly is on the Yellow- 

 head's menu. 



Drawing by R. Bruce Horsfall 



YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD (', nat. size) 

 The Beau Brummel of his family 



