Bobolink
A bubbling metallic song tumbles over spring grass from a bird that will later migrate all the way to southern South America.
Artwork inspired by John Bloom
Male bobolinks are black underneath and pale above—the reverse of many familiar songbirds—while females and nonbreeding birds are warm buff and streaked. Early mowing can destroy nests and flightless young across productive hay country.
Listen from a roadside pullout or public grassland and avoid walking through nesting cover. Note mowing stage and flock behavior; after breeding, large southbound groups may look entirely different from spring males.
- Best clue
- Breeding male appears backward-tuxedo black below and pale above, with a straw-yellow nape
- Habitat
- large hayfields, wet meadows, and grasslands with moderate vegetation
- Regional status
- Native regional species
Quick guide
- First decision
- Straw-colored nape
- Context check
- Black underparts in spring male; context: large hayfields, wet meadows, and grasslands with moderate vegetation
Read Bobolink in four field decisions
- Establish the whole form
- Read the first decision for Bobolink concerns “Straw-colored nape”.
- Separate the nearest alternative
- Compare test the first reading of Bobolink against “Black underparts in spring male”.
- Add ecological context
- Large hayfields, wet meadows, and grasslands with moderate vegetation; may–August in Iowa.
- Leave the evidence intact
- Use distance to observe do not reposition, collect, bait, pursue, or clear vegetation.
Good to know
The strongest Bobolink record preserves the distinction between “Straw-colored nape” and “Black underparts in spring male” while also showing the surrounding habitat.
Notice these
- Straw-colored nape
- Black underparts in spring male
- Bubbling metallic song
- Extraordinary long-distance migration