Birds of the World

Icteridae : New World Blackbirds

Brewer's Blackbird

Euphagus cyanocephalus

male - Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada - September 2011

Brewer's Blackbird is resident along the Pacific coastal regions of North America with ringing studies in central California showing that many birds do not move more than 10km from the site of their initial capture.  In the interior regions of their range, however, they are migratory, moving south towards Mexico and southern USA during the cold winter months when snow cover on their breeding grounds would make it difficult for them to find sufficient food to survive.

immature male - Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada - September 2011

Brewer's Blackbird has undergone a significant range expansion eastwards in the last century due to the increase in suitable habitat after the large-scale forest clearances initiated by the arrival of white settlers in western areas of USA and Canada.

female - Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada - September 2011