Common blackbird – Turdus Merula

Common blackbird – Turdus Merula

Common Blackbird – Turdus Merula

There is 9 subspecies of blackbird.

The common blackbird has a height of 27cm with a wingspan of 34 to 38 cm. It weighs 80 to 110g.

The adult male blackbird has completely black plumage, with the eye ring and the beak yellow-orange. Eyes, legs and feet are black.
The female is browner than the male, with light brown throat and chest. It often spout of two colors black and pale yellow, light brown eye ring. Eyes, legs and feet are dark brown.

Blackbird feeds on the ground, mainly insects, spiders, earthworms and various seeds, berries and fruits.

The cry of the blackbird is hysterical when alert. The cry in flight is tenuous and flickering.
It lives in all kinds of forests and woodlands with undergrowth, forest edges, in shrubby areas, crops, hedgerows, parks and gardens, even in urban areas. It flies low to the ground and travels short distances. It can also have a quick flight with rapid wing beats.

It nests in hedges, thickets, shrubs or deciduous shrubs. Pairs form at the beginning of winter and the first nests appear at the end of cold periods. The female builds the nest and the male brings materials. The female lays 3 to 6 blue-green eggs, spotted with reddish-brown. Incubation lasts about two weeks, by female. The male can
replaced her for a short time when it leaves the nest. The young leave the nest after 12 to 13 days after birth. The parents feed them for three weeks and they are independent after a month.

During the breeding season, violent territorial fights are rare, two males can fight face to face, crying, with fingers and claws outstretched toward each other.

It has a longevity of life of 16 years.

Blackbird has predators such as domestic cats and crows.

 

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