A black bird can easily blend into the night sky, making them trickier to spot than other birds. Yet, their feathers are sleek and intense, which is why they’re a sight to see. When admiring birds at any time of day, keep an eye out for ones with beautiful dark feathers. While they might not stand out as much as the most colorful birds, there’s still a wide variety of impressive black birds in North America.
Common Black Bird Species in North America
Below are a few of the black birds you may encounter across the continent. Many are solid black while some have other colors mixed in.
1. American Crow
- Scientific Name: Corvus brachyrhynchos
- Location: Fields and open woodlands across continental United States and Canada
- Size: 16 to 21 inches
American crows are solid black from beak to tail, and they often appear near humans. In the winter, they typically roost in large groups of hundreds or even thousands of birds. They’re highly intelligent animals that can make and use tools, such as sharpening wood to help them when foraging. Their sharp caw sound is very recognizable, and they can also mimic human words.
2. Common Raven
- Scientific Name: Corvus corax
- Location: Forests, deserts, and mountains across the Northern Hemisphere
- Size: 22 to 27 inches
Ravens have sleek black feathers and a dark black bill just like crows, but they’re much larger. Like American crows, common ravens are intelligent birds that have displayed problem-solving skills and mimicking abilities. They appear in a wide range of habitats across all of the Northern Hemisphere, which includes areas near people in North America. They’re agile fliers, so you might spot them spinning and rolling in the air.
3. Red-Winged Blackbird
- Scientific Name: Agelaius phoeniceus
- Location: Marshes and wetlands across North America and Central America
- Size: 7 to 9 inches
Male red-winged blackbirds have distinct coloring that features solid black feathers with a small red patch on the tops of their wings. Females have patterned brown feathers instead. You’ll often hear the males before you see them. They perch on top of tall plants in wetlands while making a loud “conk-la-ree” sound to attract a female.
4. Brewer’s Blackbird
- Scientific Name: Euphagus cyanocephalus
- Location: Grasslands, fields, and meadows across North America
- Size: 8 to 10 inches
Brewer’s blackbird is exactly what you’d expect from the term “blackbird.” The males of this species have solid black feathers, bills, and legs. Then, they have pale yellow eyes that contrast the rest of the coloring. Females have dull brown feathers rather than black. These black birds often create colonies of hundreds of birds when nesting. Their eggs have varying patterns to help them stay hidden.
5. Rusty Blackbird
- Scientific Name: Euphagus carolinus
- Location: Wetlands and wooded swamps across Canada and the eastern United States
- Size: 8 to 10 inches
During the breeding season, male rusty blackbirds have sleek black feathers. However, for the rest of the year, they have rust-colored patches among their black feathers. The females are always a light rust color everywhere except their wings, which appear darker. This black bird species primarily stays in areas near water, and they sometimes form small mixed-species flocks in the winter with other dark-colored birds like common grackles and red-winged blackbirds.
6. European Starling
- Scientific Name: Sturnus vulgaris
- Location: Urban, suburban, and agricultural areas across Europe, Asia, North Africa, and North America
- Size: 8 to 9 inches
European starlings are native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, but they’re now common across North America as well. People released a group of these birds in North America in the 1980s, and they quickly reproduced and spread out since then. These birds have black feathers with white speckles, but their shiny plumage often has a purple or green tint to it depending on the lighting. While they’re beautiful birds, they often compete with native species and damage crops.
7. American Coot
- Scientific Name: Fulica americana
- Location: Lakes, ponds, and marshes across North America
- Size: 15 to 17 inches
The American coot is a waterfowl with solid black/dark gray feathers, a white bill, and red eyes. These birds don’t have webbed feet like ducks. Instead, they have broad lobes of skin on the ends of their long toes to help them swim. In shallow water, they can skim the surface for plant matter and insects, but in deep water, you might see them dive under in search of something to eat.
8. Great-Tailed Grackle
- Scientific Name: Quiscalus mexicanus
- Location: Open habitats near water from central United States to northern South America
- Size: 15 to 18 inches
The great-tailed grackle lives up to its name. The males of this black bird species have solid black feathers with large tails that stick upright. They show off their tail feathers to attract females, which are mostly dull brown in color. There are a lot more female great-tailed grackles than males because females are smaller and require less food. They typically forage for food on the ground, but they’re not afraid to wade in the water for food when needed.
9. Double-Crested Cormorant
- Scientific Name: Nannopterum auritum
- Location: Aquatic environments across North America
- Size: 28 to 35 inches long
If you’ve seen a black bird with its wings outstretched on the shore, you’ve likely seen a double-crested cormorant drying its wings. In addition to dark feathers, these birds also have bright orange bills and green eyes. They hunt by diving under the surface and swimming underwater. They have less preen oil than other waterbirds, which is why they spend a lot of time sunning on the shore after a swim.
10. Brown-Headed Cowbird
- Scientific Name: Molothrus ater
- Location: Fields, meadows, and forest edges across North America
- Size: 6 to 9 inches
Male brown-headed cowbirds have light brown heads, but the rest of their bodies are solid black. Females are mostly light brown, making it hard to distinguish them from other common birds. These birds don’t ever build their own nests. Instead, a female cowbird lays her eggs in the nest of another species, causing the other bird to raise the young cowbirds as their own. Because of this, brown-headed cowbirds typically mate with several birds in one season.
11. Phainopepla
- Scientific Name: Phainopepla nitens
- Location: Deserts of the southwestern United States and Mexico
- Size: 6 to 8 inches
This stunning bird species has sleek black feathers, a tall crest, and red eyes. The females are a lighter gray while the males are solid black. The name “Phainopepla” means “shining robe” in Greek as a reference to the bird’s beautiful feathers. These birds primarily eat mistletoe fruit, however, since the fruit is low in nutrients, they need to eat about 1,100 per day.
12. Groove-Billed Ani
- Scientific Name: Crotophaga sulcirostris
- Location: Open lowlands from southern United States to northern South America
- Size: 12 to 13 inches
The scruffy black feathers with shimmering edges make this bird stand out, but the bird’s bill is the most unique characteristic. These black birds have tall bills that are flat on the sides with small grooves. They use their weirdly-shaped bills to help them catch lizards and insects. They seem clumsy as they explore bushes, shrubs, and other plants, but they purposely use exaggerated movements to scare prey out into the open.
13. Fish Crow
- Scientific Name: Corvus ossifragus
- Location: Beaches, marshes, and lakes of the eastern United States
- Size: 14 to 16 inches
Fish crows appear like American crows due to their solid black plumage and pointed bills. However, they’re smaller and drawn to water. While they’ll eat just about anything they find, including carrion and garbage, they commonly eat crabs, marine invertebrates, and turtle eggs, which appear frequently in the fish crow’s habitat. Another way to tell fish crows apart from American crows is to listen to their calls. Fish crows make short nasally sounds and don’t mimic noises as often as other crows.
14. Tri-Colored Blackbird
- Scientific Name: Agelaius tricolor
- Location: Open habitats of the western United States
- Size: 7 to 9 inches
Tri-colored blackbirds look a lot like red-winged blackbirds, but they have a white stripe beneath their red patch instead of a yellow one. They’re extremely social birds, forming breeding colonies with thousands of birds. One tri-colored blackbird colony in the 1930s included 300,000 birds and covered 59 acres. That’s more than the entire species population today.
15. Hill Myna
- Scientific Name: Gracula religiosa
- Location: Jungles and forests of southern Asia and parts of North America
- Size: 10 to 12 inches
Even though hill mynas naturally live in Asia, you might occasionally see them in North America, especially Hawaii and Florida. People released them because of the pet trade, and now they’ve grown their populations in warm states. This black bird’s popularity comes from the hill myna’s ability to mimic up to 100 human words. Plus, they have an iconic look with sleek black feathers, bright orange bills, and yellow wattles.
See if You Can Identify Types of Black Bird in North America
Now that you know some iconic black bird species in North America, keep an eye out for these feathered friends. They appear in all types of habitats, including marshes, deserts, and even backyards. So, next time you spot one, see if you can identify the exact species
