Biography of a Redwinged Blackbird, The (1946)

[Music] here are male redwing feeding together in Florida where they go for the winter there's not a single female in this flaw early in spring the Red Wings returned to the northern marshes where they raise their young the male derived long before the female these slots are a familiar sight during march and early april in most of the northern states in canada [Music] when the male's arrived on their nesting ground the Brooks gather and each male selects a small territory in the marsh he drives the other males away and sings and displays his solid evidence when the females arrived two or three weeks later each decides which territory or which male she wants for the summer emails are easily distinguished from mailed by their streak Bloomington bothered all children emails do not thing like the main so they have a number of shop all know [Music] zoom the male is displaying his gaudy shoulders and briefly singing directly all readily to attract the female he becomes most excited whenever the female of lights in your territory performing in this manner for her benefit [Music] [Applause] in due time the female accepts the male's territory and it is then her job to build the nest while he continues to sing and guard the territory after choosing the spot where the nest is to be built together stuff pliable fibers from the bark of the swamp milkweed to weave in and around the cattails roof edges and form the hanging basket which we will soon see whatever the mail thing the female whoever's her wings or give some other response there's an operatic spreche another inner exciting indeed it has been shown that among some birds the pulse rate of the female takes a sudden jump each time the male sing so perhaps the red winged heart flutters with her way with the outer basket completed the female red wing adds a plastering layer of mud or a decaying vegetation finally she adds a thick dry layer of deathly place fibers or dry grasses then the nest is ready for the eighth the following day the first egg is deposited and each day at about the same time another egg is laid until the normal clutch of four has been completed after laying the last egg the female start incubated cuddling the eggs against the bare skin or a brood spot in the middle of her breasts the male does no booty [Music] after 11 days of incubation the eggs hatch usually all on the same day though one egg is sometimes delayed until the following day we have placed the last egg in a teaspoon to watch ahead on the outside it looks nearly the same as when firstly only a little dollar on the inside however great changes of them taking place for the albumin and yolk have been transformed into a baby bird which now by twisting and turning and with the help of its tiny egg tooth is able to cut the shell apart and come out into the big world at first its natal down is wet and swinging its eyes are not open and its actions are not well organized [Music] very soon after the eggs are all hat the mother bird starts feeding the youngsters inside with he finds around the mine from then on beating is an almost continuous process he brings the insects in her bills and places them and the youngster throat touching the back of its tongue to get the right reaction if the food is not immediately swallowed it is a sign the youngsters had enough so she takes the food out of its mouth and gives it to the next one he does not eat the little ones and regular rotation but instead feeds the hungry one first that is the one with the longest neck and the widest mouth after each feeding the mother bird gently cleans the men on the first day the baby Red Wing barely have filled the bowl of a teaspoon its eyes have not yet opened and it's nadel down forms a halo but does not conceal its otherwise bear pink skin by the second day dark lines indicate where juvenal feathers will soon appear the little fellow is not quite doubled in size on the third day the incoming juvenile feather show distinctly in the wings and on the back and flank the eyes are not yet over [Music] on the fifth day the young Red Wing shows visible quills but the feathers have not yet broken from there she he can open his eyes at this age [Applause] between the 5th and 7th days great changes take place in the general appearance of the young red wing but not only has it grown much larger but its feathers of lengthened and an out breaking from there she's his eyes are wide open and gaining a little expression by the ninth day the feathers have spread out to cover most of him but his face in the middle of his breasts are still bet he has now nearly outgrown the peaceful in children a blooming shows he will resemble his mother rather than his father on the tenth day the little red wing body is entirely covered by the overlapping of revellers only his face with its large ear openings still lack seven he can now apply short distances and by the following day he is ready to leave the nest of his own accord it is now fall and the young red wings are able to shift for themselves gradually they gather into large blocks roasting together in the marsh and stopping it up and fields to be during late summer the morning and evening flights of Blackbird fill the landscape in parts of our country near the larger marshes where they sometimes gather by the tens of thousands in some places they are joined in their roots by bread called starlings and record these flights continue until October or even November for the birds are always arriving from farther north and others leaving for the south before the snow flies however all have left for northern states and are once more divided in a box of males and flocks of females in the rich feeding ground near one southern waters