Saturday, July 23, 2011

Brewer's Blackbird

These blackbirds share the same dynamic with their blackbird and grackle cousins: the males have a lovely iridescent coloration of sheeny blues, purples, and blacks, while the females are content with a homely brown. 
They have yellow eyes like a grackle, but this is diagnostic among blackbirds.
Also photographed is a rather zombified female with her chick, which looks like death himself (thus explaining her condition). Looking at this, one can easily see why these blackbirds prefer to have other birds raise their young.