Jamaican Blackbird
Nesopsar nigerrimus
A species of higher elevation woodlands where it is often found feeding high in the trees, even near the forest canopy, rather unlike other blackbird species. Indeed, any blackbird found foraging within Jamaica’s upper elevation forests is very likely this species. Its plumage is all black, its tail is short, and the bill is moderately long and slim. The similar Shiny Cowbird has a shorter, stouter bill and a longer tail. The Greater Antillean Grackle is larger, longer-tailed, and has a pale (not dark) eye. The song is a wheezy “whee-whee-oooo” and variations thereof; common call is emphatic, squeaky “wheet.”
Identification
The Jamaican blackbird is a small icterid with all black plumage. It has a short tail that is often flayed.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Nesopsar nigerrimus
- Authority
- (Osburn, 1859)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Icteridae
- Genus
- Nesopsar
Range and habitat
It is strictly arboreal and has a wheezing call. Pairs occupy large territories in a variety of wet montane forest types, including elfin and mist forests, that have substantial epiphytes and mosses on the trees. The Jamaican blackbird's habitats are confined to areas of above 575m and are rarely seen in lowland areas.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
In the absence of specialised tree probers such as the woodcreepers, ovenbirds and woodpeckers (Jamaica does have a species of woodpecker, the Jamaican woodpecker, but it is a generalist that typically feeds away from tree trunks), which occur in similar forests on the mainland, the Jamaican blackbird has convergently evolved to fill this ecological niche. The majority of the food taken by this species is found on the trunks of trees and their inner branches, feeding on animal prey, mostly insects, which it finds in bark or in bromeliads. It has shorter legs and longer claws that typical icterids, uses its tail for support when climbing tree trunks, both of which are adaptations to its niche, and has a longer bill and stronger jaw muscles than other New World blackbirds used for probing, spreading and hammering. It utilises a different niche from the other (semi) endemic icterid, the Jamaican oriole, which forages mainly in the outer branches of the trees.
Conservation
The principal threat to the Jamaican blackbird is habitat loss. There are numerous threats to Jamaican forests, including bauxite mining, charcoal production, forestry, farming and development. This species is particularly vulnerable because it is dependent on large trees which support many epiphytes. Because of these threats it is listed as Endangered by the IUCN. It is protected in the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park, and efforts are underway to stop bauxite mining in Cockpit Country.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Hooded Visorbearer
Augastes lumachella
Small, strikingly beautiful hummingbird with a short straight bill. Males have a distinctive head pattern: a black forehead and cheeks framing the green around the bill and a small golden patch on the throat. Females have a grayish face and brown sides to the head. Note the rusty tail and white breast band in both sexes. Occurs in high-elevation areas with rocks, shrubs, and cacti.
Chestnut-crowned Bush Warbler
Cettia major
Medium-sized bush warbler. Brown with a white throat, pale buffy brow, and rufous crown. Gray-sided Bush Warbler is similar but smaller, with a whiter brow stripe and paler, more gray-toned sides. Chestnut-crowned can be separated from other bush warblers by a combination of its size, bright rufous crown, and strong head pattern. Breeds in foothill and montane areas up to the treeline; prefers dense shrubby areas, particularly with an abundance of rhododendrons. In the winter, descends into lower foothill and lowland areas with scrubby edge growth. Song is a sharp, high “tih-wih-wih-wihr.” Calls include a sharp, bunting-like “tseep.”
Scottish Crossbill
Loxia scotica
Crossed bill tips give crossbills their name. Only found in pine forests of Scotland, where uncommon and local. As a rule, not safely identified in the field because it looks intermediate between smaller-billed Common (Red) Crossbill and bigger-billed Parrot Crossbill (both of which can occur in same areas). With experience (and computer analysis!), may be identified by voice. Like other crossbills, found in pairs or flocks feeding quietly on pine cones or calling excitedly before taking off in wide-ranging, bounding flight. Male plumage reddish overall; female grayish green overall, with brighter rump.
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