About Euphagus carolinus (Statius Muller, 1776)
Adult Euphagus carolinus have a pointed bill, pale yellow eye, and black plumage with faint green and purple gloss; females are greyer overall. The common name "rusty" refers to the species' brownish winter plumage. This species looks similar to Brewer's blackbird, the western member of the same genus, but differs in that Brewer's blackbird has a longer bill, and male Brewer's blackbirds have an iridescent green head. Their breeding habitat consists of wet temperate coniferous forests and muskeg across Canada, New England, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the Adirondack Mountains of New York, and Alaska. They typically nest at the edges of ponds and wetlands, building a cup-shaped nest in a tree or dense shrub, often positioned over water. Emerging dragonflies and dragonfly larvae are important food sources for these birds during the summer. This species migrates to the eastern and southeastern United States, and into parts of the Grain Belt; it sometimes wanders into Mexico. Additional vagrant individuals have been reported in Greenland and Russian Siberia.
