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| Euphagus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| MaleBrewer's blackbird | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Icteridae |
| Genus: | Euphagus Cassin, 1867 |
| Type species | |
| Psarocolius cyanocephalus[1] Wagler, 1829 | |
| Species | |
Euphagus is a small genus ofAmerican blackbirds. It contains two extant species:Brewer's blackbird,Euphagus cyanocephalus, andrusty blackbirdE. carolinus.[2]
The living species are very similar medium-sizedbirds. Adult males have mainly blackplumage and a bright yellow eye; females are dark gray-brown.
| Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Euphagus cyanocephalus | Brewer's blackbird | United States, Canada |
.jpg) | E. carolinus | Rusty blackbird | United States, Canada, Mexico |
A prehistoric relative,Euphagus magnirostris, is known fromLate Pleistocenefossils found in the famous tar seeps ofRancho La Brea,California, as well as theTalara Tar Seeps of northwesternPeru and theMene de Inciarte Tar Seep ofVenezuela. It may have been a close associate ofPleistocene megafauna communities and went extinct following the collapse of the megafauna populations.[3][4]
Both aremigratory, wintering in the southern United States andMexico, although some Brewer's blackbirds are present all year in the western US.
They build cup nests, and the female alone incubates the eggs. They are gregarious outside the breeding season.
Both species feed on seeds and insects, the rusty having a particularly high insect component to its diet. The fortunes of the two species are contrasting, with Brewer's expanding east in theGreat Lakes region, while rusty shows a worrying decline in numbers.
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