Yellow-Headed Blackbird
Xanthocaphalus xanthocephalus
The Yellow-Headed Blackbirds shown here were photographed at the National Elk Refuge in Jackson, Wyoming in late May and early June 2013. This species can be seen in much of North America, but it is more common in the western half where it uses reedy marshland for its breeding habitat. The males and females do not look alike. It is the male that is all yellow-headed, shown clinging to a reed in the left photo and walking on the grass in the middle photo. The females in the right photograph are foraging for seeds. They have yellow chests and a small amount of yellow on their faces, appearing primarily brown from the top. Like the Red-Winged Blackbird, the Yellow-Headed Blackbirds are not monogamous. The male may have more than a handful of females that breed with it in its territory, and the male leaves the females to do most of the work of feeding the young chicks. (Click on images to see enlarged versions.)