A few times over the years, Red-winged Blackbirds have stopped at our feeders during spring or fall migration for a quick snack, but they’ve never stayed around the neighborhood. That’s why I was surprised when a female Red-winged Blackbird started visiting our hopper feeder regularly in May.
One day the male showed up too. He was doing a weird mating dance in my flowerbeds and around the yard. I apologize for the bad photo, but this is the only one I got of him during the display. He was hopping around on the ground with his wings outstretched shrieking at the top of his lungs:
The female must’ve approved because last week, after a 4-week absence, both the male and female were back at the feeder. This time they brought their youngsters. And out of all the baby birds I’ve seen in my yard this year, this couple was the first to get duped by a Brown-headed Cowbird. They have two babies of their own and one “adopted” baby that hatched when a cowbird plopped her egg in the Red-winged Blackbirds’ nest.
Red-winged Blackbirds mostly prefer marsh and wetland habitat so it’s a bit unusual for them to be hanging around a wooded area full of oaks and hickories. There is a city golf course with a pond within a mile of our property, but it seems like an awfully long trip for some sunflowers seeds and peanuts.
I’m just glad they nested far enough away that I wasn’t in danger of being dive-bombed by the birds every time I stepped outside to look at my flowers. Red-winged Blackbirds are very territorial during nesting season and aren’t afraid to peck people or animals that get too close to the nest.