Bobolink – FranLaff.com

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Common Name

Bobolink

Scientific Name

Dolichonyx oryzivorus

More Clues to ID

Known in some areas as a pest, the “rice bird” who feeds on rice and grains especially during migration, this New World Blackbird has unique coloration featuring a male with high-contrast white and cream on black.

This bird species is unique not only in its appearance, but also in its song, preferred habitat, nest location, and migration. Explore all these aspects and more, using the resources below.

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Learn about this species:

If you catch a clear sight of a male bobolink in his meadow habitat, it is hard to confuse him with any other species. As in so many bird species, the female is a bit harder to identify, but range and habitat give helpful clues in this case.

Image Credits

Cephas, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Andrea Westmoreland from DeLand, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Andrea Westmoreland from DeLand, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Andrea Westmoreland from DeLand, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Wildreturn, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Kshanti Greene, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Wildreturn, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Wildreturn, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Wildreturn, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Wildreturn, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

1108px-Female_Bobolink___Dolichonyx_oryzivorus_-_Flickr_-_Andrea_Westmoreland

Bobolink_at_Lake_Woodruff_(Dolichonyx_oryzivorus)_-_Flickr_-_Andrea_Westmoreland

Dolichonyx_oryzivorus_-_Andrea_Westmoreland

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Pssst…

Did you know that this and other species are waiting their turns to be added to Fran’s FREE online courses, like the PLANTS course, or the BIRDS course?

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The local Philippines call this woody vine “tayabak”. Related to the green beans we grow in our gardens, this species’ unique turquoise claw-shaped flowers are pollinated by bats.

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This black-white-and-grey bird points its slender bill downwards – or tilts it comically upwards – as it spirals face-first down tree trunks and round and round branches, searching for insects to devour

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