Icterid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Icterids |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Adult male Bullock's oriole | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | |
| Suborder: | |
| Family: |
Icteridae
Vigors, 1825
|
Icterids are a family of small to medium-sized songbirds found in the New World (North and South America). These birds are often very colorful. Most of them have black feathers, but they also show bright patches of yellow, orange, or red.
This bird family is quite amazing because its members vary a lot. They come in many different sizes, shapes, behaviors, and colors.
Contents
What Birds Are Icterids?
The Icterid family includes many well-known birds. Some of these are the New World blackbirds, New World orioles, and bobolinks. It also includes meadowlarks, grackles, and cowbirds. You might also know oropendolas and caciques.
It's important to know that these birds are not closely related to the common blackbird found in Europe, which is a type of thrush. They are also different from the Old World orioles.
Male and Female Differences
Icterids are special among songbirds because males and females often look very different. This is called sexual dimorphism. For example, a male great-tailed grackle can be 60% heavier than a female.
The smallest Icterid is the orchard oriole. A female orchard oriole is about 15 centimeters (6 inches) long. She weighs around 18 grams. The largest Icterid is the Amazonian oropendola. A male Amazonian oropendola can be 52 centimeters (20 inches) long. It weighs about 550 grams. This huge difference in size is unusual for a family of passerine birds.
How Icterids Find Food
Icterids have a unique way of finding food. They can open their bills very strongly. This special skill is called "gaping." It allows them to force open small gaps to reach hidden food. They might use this to open cracks in bark or soil.
Images for kids
-
A male Brewer's blackbird using its gaping skill to find food in the soil.
See also
In Spanish: Ictéridos para niños
