Tawny-shouldered blackbird

The tawny-shouldered blackbird (Agelaius humeralis) is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is found in Cuba and Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti). It is a vagrant in the United States (to the Florida Keys).

Description

Measuring 20 cm (7.9 in) long, this highly social species is entirely black, save for the namesake brown-orange patch at the shoulder. The patch may not be visible when the wings are folded.

Taxonomy

Two subspecies are described:

• A. h. humeralis – (Vigors, 1827): nominate, found in Cuba and Hispaniola
• A. h. scopulus – Garrido, 1970: found on Cayo Cantiles (east of Isla de la Juventud off southwestern Cuba)

Breeding

They breed from April to August, laying 3–4 greenish-white eggs spotted with brown in a cup-shaped nest that is lined with soft materials and placed in a tree.

Diet and habitat

Tawny-shouldered blackbirds eat insects, seeds, nectar, fruit, and small lizards. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, pastureland, and heavily degraded former forest.

References

External links

• BirdLife species factsheet for Agelaius humeralis
• "Agelaius humeralis". Avibase.
• "Tawny-shouldered blackbird media". Internet Bird Collection.
• Tawny-shouldered blackbird photo gallery at VIREO (Drexel University)
• Tawny-shouldered blackbird species account at Neotropical Birds (Cornell Lab of Ornithology)
• Audio recordings of Tawny-shouldered blackbird on Xeno-canto.

1. Yellow-shouldered blackbird
2. Icterid
3. Red-shouldered blackbird
4. List of birds by common name
5. Agelaius
6. List of birds of North America
7. List of least concern birds
8. List of birds of the United States
9. List of birds of Florida
10. List of endemic birds of the West Indies
11. List of birds of the Dominican Republic
12. List of birds of Brazil
13. List of icterid species
14. List of birds of Kangaroo Island, South Australia
15. List of birds of Cuba
16. List of vulnerable birds
17. List of birds of Dry Tortugas National Park
18. List of birds of South America
19. List of birds of Haiti
20. List of birds of the Cayman Islands