Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus), Woodland Road, Tucson, Pima County

This female Rusty Blackbird was discovered by Mark Stevenson along Woodland Roadd in east Tucson on the morning of 19 November 2009. It was photographed that same morning at the same spot by Dave Stejskal. This bird was associating with a sizable mixed flock of Brewer's and Red-winged blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackles, and European Starlings. The flock was foraging in a grassy horse pasture interspersed with widely spaced velvet mesquites.

Rusty Blackbird is a casual Fall migrant and Winter visitor to the state.   Arizona averages only one sighting about every 2-3 years.  There is only one previous record for Pima County.  Since this species has experienced a recent population crash over much of its range, it is expected to be much rarer from now into the foreseeable future. 

In this plumage, female Rusty Blackbirds are essentially unmistakable. They are similar in size and shape to the much more common Brewer's Blackbird, but they have a noticeably thinner and shorter bill. The pale eye is unlike female Brewer's, but is shared with male Brewer's. The crown, cheeks, and back are all colored a rich, rusty brown, and all of the wing coverts and tertial edges are edged broadly in the same color. A pale and contrasting buffy brow separates the darker crown from dark face. One of the most striking field marks in this plumage is the contrasting blue-gray rump and uppertail coverts - a mark that Brewer's never shows.

19 November 2009, photo by David Stejskal