Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus)

About Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus)

• Kingdom: Animals
• Phylum: Chordates
• Class: Birds
• Order: Perching Birds
• Family: American Blackbirds and Orioles

Comments: Two subspecies are recognized in North America: Euphagus carolinus carolinus, which occupies most of the species' range, and the darker E. c. nigrans, which breeds in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Magdalen Island, and possibly eastern New Brunswick (AOU 1957, Avery 1995).

Few comprehensive molecular or morphological studies have been conducted on relationships between rusty blackbirds and other members of the sizeable family Icteridae. Brewer's blackbird (Euphagus cyanocephalus) is likely the closest relative. Species in the genus Euphagus are probably more closely allied with the grackles (Quiscalus) than to Agelaius blackbirds (Avery 1995).