Bobolink is a strikingly beautiful bird with a very unique song

Bobolinks are strikingly beautiful birds with black feathers and gorgeous white accents. The back of their head is adorned with white plumage that resembles a crown or a helmet.Show more

As interesting as their plumage, the song of the bobolink is unique and unmistakable. They create a wide range of chirps, whistles, and beeps that all blend together in a fascinating call as they flit around the branches of trees and brush in meadows. Often found where cattle graze, they are unconcerned with the larger, but gentle animals that share their territories.

Bobolinks are a listed as a species at risk in North America due to habitat loss and human impact. They nest primarily in hay fields and meadows. When horses were our primary mode of transportation, the bobolink had more hay fields to nest in. Now, with reduced hay production, their numbers have declined.

Another issue for the bobolink is that pressure on farming has created a need for third harvests in hay fields and earlier cutting. Cutting hay earlier in the season will not provide the bobolink with enough time to fledge. The nestlings are killed in the process.

Bobolink are migratory birds, covering long distances in a season, occasionally flying as much as 1,100km (660miles) in one day.