Birds · Passeriformes · Icteridae
Eastern Meadowlark
Sturnella magna
It could become endangered in the near future if current threats go unchecked. See full glossary
The eastern meadowlark is a grassland icterid with an intensely yellow breast crossed by a strongly marked black V, and a cryptic brown back that makes it vanish the moment it turns around. Its fluting song is one of the characteristic sounds of the North American countryside, and its decline, of more than seventy per cent since 1970, is one of the most severe on the continent.
Weight
76 g – 150 g
Size
19 cm – 26 cm
Lifespan
10 years
Diet
Insectivore
Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
In pairs
Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.
Sighting difficulty
Moderate
Fun facts
- Its decline is one of the most severe in North America: more than seventy per cent since 1970, driven by the conversion of grassland into intensive crops and by ever earlier mowing, which destroys nests before the chicks can fly.
- It is the state bird of six US states, tied with the northern cardinal among the birds most represented in those emblems.
- Its cryptic back and yellow breast work like a switch: head on it is impossible to miss, and the moment it turns it vanishes into the dry grass.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
- Habitat & environment
- Grassland, pasture, hay meadows and savannah of eastern North America and northern South America
- Birth weight
- Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent
- Size at birth
- Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent
- Sexual maturity
- 12 months
- Gestation / incubation
- 13 days
- Litter / clutch size
- 5
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturnella_magna
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: From March to July on the grasslands of eastern North America, when the male sings his fluted whistle from posts and wires.
Where to watch it
Parques y spots de buceo donde se ha documentado esta especie — se muestran 10 de 30 documentados.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Eastern Meadowlark — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Brown-headed Cowbird
Molothrus ater
Great-tailed Grackle
Quiscalus mexicanus
Red-Winged Blackbird
Agelaius phoeniceus
Baltimore Oriole
Icterus galbula
Northern Bobwhite
Colinus virginianus
Piping Plover
Charadrius melodus
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about eastern meadowlark.
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