Status and Conservation Issues

Most Rusty Blackbirds are boreal breeders. They occupy the entire coniferous and mixed forest zone. This includes the northern edge of deciduous forest and grassland to the southern edge of the tundra. It’s estimated that seventy percent of the Rusty Blackbird population breeds in Canada’s boreal forests.

Because of their far northern location in the forests the Rusty Blackbird is a difficult bird species to monitor. Its breeding grounds are generally inaccessible. Low breeding densities make it poorly sampled by the Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) and other monitoring programs.

The Breeding Bird Survey showed a significant decrease every year from 1966 -2002 across their whole range. Likewise, its very low numbers relative to other species it associates with on the winter grounds, and its similarity to them, make it easy to overlook on winter counts such as the Christmas Bird Count (CBC).

IBecause of this all available evidence shows cause for concerns. The BBS indicates very strong declines, especially since 1980, in widely separated areas despite increased proficiency of counters in identifying this species.

Some problems such as land use that creates more open habitats favor other species where the Rusty Blackbird is unable to compete. This causes problems for the species. Some control programs also affect the Rusty Blackbird because they happen to be in the area with other targeted species.

There is a lot to be learned about the Rusty Blackbird’s conservation needs. It is unlikely to be able to get much public support and sympathy for a blackbird. After all, blackbirds have been considered bearers of evil. That stigma has probably not gone away.