This article features a selection of handheld photographs of Red-winged Blackbirds in flight… all of which were created using Pro Capture H.  Red-winged Blackbirds arrive in our area of Southern Ontario in early spring. Once they have nests with eggs or chicks, Red-winged Blackbirds can become very aggressive.

NOTE: Click on images to enlarge.

I’ve witnessed blackbirds attacking a variety of mammals and birds that are much larger than themselves. Many photographers, including me, have been attacked by these aggressive birds when they inadvertently come to close to nests.

During a recent visit to Hendrie Valley I observed a Red-Winged Blackbird attacking a trumpeter swan. The altercation was less than 14 metres (~46 feet) away from me.  I had never seen this type of vicious attack launched against another bird so close up before. Here are a few images from that attack.

The attack persisted for a couple of minutes before the swan had moved away sufficiently for the blackbird to calm down.

The range of the Red-winged Blackbird extends throughout North America including Mexico and much of Central America. They are commonly found in marsh habitats where they usually feed on insects.  They usually forage on the ground and will also visit seed feeders in urban settings.

Red-winged Blackbirds are a polyamorous species with males having as many as 15 females in their territories.

Males aggressively defend their territories and often spend more than 25% of daylight hours in a defensive mode.  Their defensive behaviours are often insufficient as 25% to 50% of chicks born in their territories can be sired by other males.

There are a number of different populations and subspecies throughout their range. Studies have shown that the difference between populations of Red-winged Blackbirds is caused by environmental factors rather than genetic makeup.

The Red-winged Blackbird is one of the most abundant and common species that can be seen and heard throughout North and Central America. While the males are brightly coloured with flashes of bright red on their wings, the females are a subdued, streaky brown colour, resembling a large sparrow.

Given the robust population of Red-winged Blackbirds they make ideal subjects for photographers wanting to practice their eye hand coordination and shutter release timing when photographing these birds taking flight.

Technical Note

Photographs were captured handheld using camera gear as noted in the EXIF data.  My standard Pro Capture H settings were used with Pre-Shutter Frames and Frame Limiter both set to 15. I used a single, small AF point and shot at 60 frames-per-second. All images were produced from RAW files using my standard process. This is the 1,283 article published on this website since its original inception in 2015.

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