Visual Search | Wizard | Browse
Bird name:
Home| Search| Browser| Expert| Forum| Store| My WhatBird| Help| Site Map

Eastern Meadowlark

Sturnella magnaOrder: PASSERIFORMES Family: Blackbirds and Orioles (Icteridae)
Codes: Common Name: EAME Scientific Name: STUMAG ITIS Taxonomic No.: 179034
Least Concern
 
Eastern Meadowlark Breeding Male
Copyright © 2004 - 2008 Whatbird.com



Rate this Illustration: Excellent Very Good Good
Fair Below Avg Poor

Birdman Mel's Backyard Tips
Clingers Only Feeder
Weather resistant inexpensive feeder is ideal for small birds.
Suet Delight
Easy to hang and maintain, holds all kinds of packaged suet.
Ultimate Woodpecker Feeder
Only allows woodpeckers to feed made of Inland Cedar.
The No-No Copper Feeder
Beautiful copper feeder holds 2.5 lbs of sunflower seeds.
Attracting Clingers

Overview

Eastern Meadowlark: Short ground-dwelling bird with buff- and black-streaked brown upperparts. Head has black-and-white striped crown, white face, black eyestripe and a pointed bill. Throat to belly is yellow, broad black V on breast. Brown tail has white edges and undertail coverts.

Range and Habitat

Eastern Meadowlark: Breeds from southeastern Canada through eastern U.S. west to Arizona; resident in the Bahamas and Mexico. Spends winters mostly within breeding range. Preferred habitats include pastures, meadows, grassy fields, prairies, open country, and country roadsides. Often seen singing from fence posts or utility wires.

Topo Map: Perching-like Body


Listen to Call

Similar Sounding

Voice Text

"see-you-see-yer", "spring is here"

Interesting Facts

 A male Eastern Meadowlark typically has two mates at a time, and on rare occasion, three.

 Up to 17 subspecies are recognized by taxonomists.

 The scientific name Sturnella magna is Latin for, rather confusingly, "large little starling", the generic name having being given due to the meadowlarks' behavior being similar to starlings.

 A group of meadowlarks are collectively known as a "pod" of meadowlarks.


Bird Term Glossary



Author

Gary Owen Dick

Splitbar
Range Map for Eastern Meadowlark

Related Birds

Western Meadowlark
Dickcissel
Yellow Rail
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Bobolink
Scott's Oriole
Yellow Grosbeak
.
Family Meadowlark (Icteridae)_blue
Species Sturnella magna
Length9 - 11 Inches
Wingspan15.25 Inches

Eastern Meadowlark

Eastern Meadowlark: Short ground-dwelling bird with buff- and black-streaked brown upperparts. Head has black-and-white striped crown, white face, black eyestripe and a pointed bill. Throat to belly is yellow, broad black V on breast. Brown tail has white edges and undertail coverts.

● Song: "see-you-see-yer", "spring is here"

● Foraging & Feeding: Eastern Meadowlark: Feeds mostly on insects and other invertebrates; also eats seeds and berries. Forages on the ground; finds food by gaping (forcibly opening bill) in soil or in plant stalks to expose hidden prey.

● Breeding & nesting: Eastern Meadowlark: Three to seven pale pink eggs with brown and lavender spots are laid in a nest made of dried grass, pine needles, horsehair, and plant stems; nest is domed-shaped with a side entrance and built on the ground in a meadow, crop field, or weedy orchard. Incubation ranges from 13 to 14 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Eastern Meadowlark: Western Meadowlark is duller, has yellow throat extending slightly farther onto face, and different voice.

Flight Pattern

Several rapid wing beats followed by a glide.
Eastern Meadowlark Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Eastern Meadowlark: Breeds from southeastern Canada through eastern U.S. west to Arizona; resident in the Bahamas and Mexico. Spends winters mostly within breeding range. Preferred habitats include pastures, meadows, grassy fields, prairies, open country, and country roadsides. Often seen singing from fence posts or utility wires.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
Population
MigrationNorthern birds migrate
Weight3.6 Ounces
Perching-like BodyX
Undertail covertsX
Small feathers that cover the areas where the retrices (tail feathers) attach to the rump.
UpperpartsX
Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.
BellyX
The ventral part of the bird, or the area between the flanks on each side and the crissum and breast. Flight muscles are located between the belly and the breast.
BreastX
The upper front part of a bird.
CrownX
The crown is the top part of the birds head.
FaceX
The front part of the head consisting of the bill, eyes, cheeks and chin.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Read more...
ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

Read more...
Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX