Threats
The Rusty Blackbird has received little research attention although it is known to have declined approximately 90% over the last thirty-two years. Due to its habitat and relatively few numbers, as well as its far northern home it is apparently not on any super hot list for research. This does not mean there is nothing being done, however. There are many groups trying to urge conservation efforts for the Rusty Blackbird. There are initiatives and programs to set aside certain areas for conservation efforts and bring awareness to the plight of the declining population of Rusty Blackbirds.

Not enough is known to definitively cite a singular cause of its fast decline, but there is a large part of its natural breeding habitat in the Boreal wetlands of Canada no longer suitable. Over two million acres of that land has been the home of huge hydro-electric projects. In the southern end of its breeding range a lot of land has been lost to agriculture thus striking another blow to that blackbird’s breeding area.

In the wintertime in some southern areas of the United States the blackbirds, as well as other species have been sprayed with pesticides to kill the birds because they are considered pests to agriculture. It is not known how many Rusty Blackbirds are killed by such spraying.

Enemies
The predators that the Rusty Blackbird needs to avoid are the owl, the hawk, and the falcon, all of which could eat the bird. In addition humans can have a negative impact on the population of these blackbirds as mentioned above in the mass spraying of mixed birds due to agricultural threats. Oh, and let’s not forget, that some say a common enemy of birds are cats, although in this case due to habitat and habits, that is probably not the case with Rusty Blackbirds.