Melodious blackbird

The melodious blackbird (Dives dives) is a New World tropical bird.

Melodious blackbird
In Belize
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Icteridae
Genus: Dives
Species:
D. dives
Binomial name
Dives dives
(Deppe, 1830)
Range of D. dives
Adult bird in Belize

Description

The adult is a medium-sized blackbird with a rounded tail. The male is 25.5 cm (10.0 in) long and weighs 108 g (3.8 oz). The slightly smaller female is 23 cm (9.1 in) long and weighs 95 g (3.4 oz). The adult plumage is entirely black with a bluish gloss, and the bill, legs and feet are also black. The iris is brown. Females are identically plumaged to the males; young birds are brownish black and lack iridescence. There are no subspecies.

Voice

The song is a duet between pairs, with a see note, followed by a whit and a northern cardinal-like whistle. The call is a metallic puitt.

Distribution and habitat

D. dives is a resident breeder from coastal eastern and south-eastern Mexico to Costa Rica. Its range is expanding. El Salvador was colonized in the 1950s, and eastern Guatemala in the 1960s. Prior to 1989 there was only one Costa Rican record, but it is now easily seen at least as far south as San José, and it is expected to colonize Panama.

The melodious blackbird inhabits a wide range of habitats, but avoids dense forest and thick undergrowth. It has adapted to human habitation and can be seen in gardens and on lawns. The melodious blackbird forages mainly on the ground for insects but will also take nectar and ripening maize ears as well as other plants, such as the fruits of the gumbo-limbo (Bursera simaruba) and Trophis racemosa.[2]

Behaviour

Breeding

Breeding birds are highly territorial, and adults will attack predators like the brown jay, but small flocks form outside the nesting season. A breeding pair will give a display in which each bird spreads its tail, extends its wings, and ruffles its plumage.

Both sexes build a cup nest of plant material 3–7 m (9.8–23.0 ft) high in a bush or tree and line it with mud and dung. The female lays three or four brown-blotched blue eggs, which she incubates alone, although the male helps with feeding the chicks. This species is not known to be parasitised by cowbirds, which presumably has also contributed to its success.

Status

This species has benefited from deforestation, which has allowed its rapid range expansion through the creation of suitable habitat.

References
  1. BirdLife International (2020). "Dives dives". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T22724302A136767302. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22724302A136767302.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. Foster, Mercedes S. (2007): The potential of fruiting trees to enhance converted habitats for migrating birds in southern Mexico. Bird Conservation International 17(1): 45-61. doi:10.1017/S0959270906000554 PDF fulltext

Further reading
  • Skutch, Alexander F. (1954). "Melodius blackbird" (PDF). Life Histories of Central American Birds. Pacific Coast Avifauna, Number 31. Berkeley, California: Cooper Ornithological Society. pp. 276–280.
  • Jaramillo, Alvaro & Burke, Peter (1999): New World Blackbirds. Christopher Helm, London. ISBN 0-7136-4333-1
  • Stiles, F. Gary & Skutch, Alexander Frank (1989): A guide to the birds of Costa Rica. Comistock, Ithaca. ISBN 0-8014-9600-4
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