Guide to Midwest Song Birds

First of all, what exactly is a songbird? It is a species whose vocal organ is well developed and adapted to creating more elaborate songs than the typical bird. It is also called by the scientific term oscines. Songbirds in the Midwest are not difficult to find, and their songs are easy to recognize.

The Northern Cardinal, or Cardinalis cardinalis, is bright red bird with a pointed crest on its head and a black patch on its face. Juveniles and females look similar, having a light brown body with orange tinged wings and tail, but the younger birds have a black beak instead of a red one. Cardinals lay light brown eggs with dark brown speckles. They prefer to live in the edges of forests, thickets, and suburban areas. 

The Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) sticks to its name, being light blue with a white belly, and has a pointed crest like the Cardinal. Females look the same as males. It has a black collar around its neck that goes all the way around, behind its crest. Blue Jays are notorious for raiding other birds’ nests and being quite noisy. Eggs are gray-green with darker speckling. You can find Blue Jays in both deciduous and coniferous forests, as well as suburban areas.

The American Robin, Turdus migratorius, was named after the European Robin, although they are not closely related. The American Robin is actually a thrush. It is quite common and distinguished by it’s brick-red breast. Its head and back are dark gray to black, with white striping around its face and throat. Sexes cannot be differentiated by plumage, though juveniles have a speckled breast. Robin eggs are better known, famous for their beautiful blue color. Robins tend to live near forests, lawns (to pick for worms in freshly mowed grass), and berry trees.

Tufted Titmice (Titmouse for singular) are small, plump, mouse colored birds that go by the scientific name Baeolophus bicolor. It has a blue-gray back, feathers, and head, and a white underbody with orange tinged flanks. There is a black patch in between its eyes, and a little tuft of feathers on top of its head. They were normally a migratory species, but now tend to remain in their area all year long, perhaps because of the increase of bird feeders making winters easier to survive. The eggs are tiny and cream colored, sometimes with brown speckling. They like to live in woodland and suburban areas with a feeder close by.

The name “Red-Winged Blackbird” for Agelaius phoeniceus should really only apply to the males, as the females are a dull brown color. The bird is as its name describes, an all black bird, with a red shoulder and yellow wing bar. The red is usually only seen when the bird is flying. Their beak, eyes, and feet are black. They can be very aggressive when protecting their territory and can even swoop down on a human’s head if they get too close during the mating season. Their eggs are green-blue with brown speckling. They prefer large open areas such as meadows and overgrown fields.

Though these are not nearly all the songbirds you will find in the Midwest, they are some of the most commonly sighted. Their songs are easily distinguishable as are their appearances.