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Yellow-headed blackbird

Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus · Unprotected and nuisance birds

Yellow-headed blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus): Male: black with a yellow head and white wing patches that stand out in flight. Female: smaller, sooty brown with yellow on the face and chest, white streaks on the belly and no white wing patches. This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and dateOpen the yellow-headed blackbird map

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Scientific name
Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
Family
Icteridae
In North America
Native
Range
Breeds from central-interior British Columbia east to extreme western Ontario and northwestern Ohio, south to southern California, New Mexico and northern Texas; winters from central California, Arizona and Texas south into Mexico.
Biology

How to identify it

Male: black with a yellow head and white wing patches that stand out in flight. [1][2]

Female: smaller, sooty brown with yellow on the face and chest, white streaks on the belly and no white wing patches. [1][2]

Immatures have some yellow on the head and small or absent wing patches. [1][2]

Length 21-26 cm. [1][2]

Field knowledge

Where it lives

Breeds in freshwater sloughs, marshy lake borders and tall cattails in water up to 3-4 ft deep; forages around marshes and in pastures, plowed fields and feedlots. [1][2]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

Migrates in flocks; males may winter farther north than females [1][2]

Forages mostly walking in open fields or at water edges; may follow farm machinery; usually in flocks with other blackbirds outside nesting [1][2]

Feeds heavily on insects in summer; about two-thirds of diet is seeds [1][2]

Harsh, incessant oka-wee-wee and kruck calls that blend into a wavering chorus in colonies [1][2]

Regulatory handoff

Where it is listed for removal or nuisance take

These authorities list this species as nuisance, invasive or unprotected wildlife that may be taken. This is not a game season.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Breeds from central-interior British Columbia east to extreme western Ontario and northwestern Ohio, south to southern California, New Mexico and northern Texas; winters from central California, Arizona and Texas south into Mexico.

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. National Audubon Society · reviewed 2026-09-30

    National Audubon Society

  2. NatureServe · reviewed 2026-09-30

    NatureServe