Scientific Name: Agelaius phoeniceus

Residency: Year-round throughout Arizona.

Diet: Insects and weed seeds. Comes to bird feeders for cracked corn and mixed seeds. 

Predators: Marsh Wrens may kill young without eating them and puncture eggs. Hawks and owls prey upon adults.

Nesting: Nest of reeds and grasses lined with finer material.  Nest placed 3-8 ft off the ground in reeds and grasses or shrubs. Eggs: 3-5 per clutch, pale greenish blue with dark marks, 2-3 broods per year.

Nesting Records:

Notes: Nests placed over deep water are safer from predators.

Photo: Male photographed at Scottsdale Community College on February 22, 2007. For more photos, click on camera icon.

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