Red-winged Blackbird

A medium-size passerine with a sharply pointed, strong bill, somewhat upright posture. Summer male: black, including soft parts, with bright red shoulder patch or “epaulet,” bordered by yellow in most subspecies. Winter male: as summer male, but shows warm brown feather tips throughout the body. Female: well streaked throughout, with whitish supercilium. Above brown and streaked. Face and underparts pale with dense streaking, broadly on breast and upper belly. Peachy wash on chin and throat. Dull reddish edges to lesser coverts create a poorly developed reddish epaulet. Soft parts blackish. Immature male: as winter male, but heavily edged and fringed rusty, brown or buffy above, often showing buff supercilium. Epaulet shows black spotting. Immature female: as adult female, but epaulet not developed and throat lacks peachy wash.