When do blackbirds breed? How do males and females differ? You can find out everything you need to know about the blackbird in our profile.
Despite its simple appearance, the blackbird (Turdus merula), also called the blackbird, known as a sore thumb. It is one of our most common native bird species and occurs as a successor to almost all man-made habitats. It is also geographically widespread and is considered a breeding bird in all European countries - except Iceland.
Characteristics of the Blackbird
| Size | About 24 cm |
| Weight | About 100 g |
| Incubation | April - May |
| Lifetime | About 5 years |
| Habitat | Forests, parks and gardens |
| Food Preference | Worms, snails, insects, berries and fruits (true "omnivores") |
| Threats | Habitat and food supply decline, Usutu virus |
How to recognize the blackbird
The blackbird is very easy to recognize by its deep black plumage, which clearly distinguishes it from other native birds. Only the bright yellow beak and the matching eyelid rings, which are created by an unfeathered area around the eye, add small splashes of color to their appearance. At most, an untrained eye could confuse the blackbird with the starling, which has a similar shape and coloration. But at second glance, the starling stands out with its white pearl pattern and the blue-green iridescence of its plumage.
All of this only applies to the male blackbirds - the females are much more plainly colored. For a more detailed description, see the "How do male and female blackbirds differ?" section below.
What does the song of the blackbird sound like?
The song of the blackbirdconsists of very clear and loud tones that form a melodic stanza. The males usually sit quite exposed and sing from a high vantage point. So, unlike many other species, there's a good chance of spotting the bird on the nearest treetop or rooftop as soon as you hear the piercing song.
You can listen to the song of the blackbird here:
How do you recognize the young birds?
The young blackbirds have a rather plain appearance. They have brownish plumage with lighter spots on the back, chest, and abdomen. Its beak is rather yellowish-orange with dark spots and the yellow eyelid rings are only hinted at.
How do you recognize blackbird eggs?
Blackbirds lay quite conspicuous eggs. These are about three centimeters in size, blue-green in color and overlooked with brown spots. The females lay between three and six eggs per clutch.
What is the difference between male and female blackbirds?
The female blackbirds look very similar to their young and are just as inconspicuous. They have the same brownish plumage and a slightly lighter chest with dark streaks. The yellow of the beak and eyelid ring is slightly more pronounced than that of young blackbirds, but not as intense as that of males.
What is the perfect habitat for blackbirds?
Blackbirds originally settled in dense forests with a lot of undergrowth. Due to the increasing decline in this natural habitat, they also inhabit much more open areas today. They have proven to be quite adaptable, populating parks, gardens and even large cities in large numbers. It is important to have a proportion of open ground or a short lawn where they can search for worms and insects.
Where do they build their nest?
Blackbirds are not very choosy when it comes to the location of their nest. They use trees, shrubs and hedges, but also climbing plants on building walls, or breed in flower boxes on the balcony. They build a nest out of twigs, which is reinforced with damp earth and padded with feathers.
When is the breeding season of blackbirds?
The breeding season of blackbirds extends from March to July. During this time, up to five broodsto be possible. The incubation period for a clutch is about 14 days; then the hatched young are fed for another two weeks in the nest. The young blackbirds then fly out, but remain dependent on the care of their parents for another 14 days before they are on their own.
Where do blackbirds spend the winter?
Blackbirds are considered partial migrants in Europe. This means that only some populations leave their breeding range in winter, while others do not. The decisive factor is how severe the winters are in the respective areas. While our blackbirds usually spend the whole year in Germany, their conspecifics from northern Europe move south more often and are then sometimes our guests.
Support blackbirds: How it works
Even if blackbirds have adapted very well to human habitats, they - like almost all birds - lack natural nesting opportunities and food supplies due to the declining tree and insect population. So if you want to support the blackbirds in their fight for resources, you can start in your own garden. See the following sections for practical tips.
What do blackbirds eat?
Blackbirds naturally feed on worms, snails and all kinds of insects. Their speci alty is earthworms, which they pull out of the ground. That is why you often see blackbirds sitting on the ground and pecking at the ground with their beaks. But they also use berries, fruits and seeds. If you want to offer additional food to support the birds, especially in winter, you should use soft food, such as oatmeal, raisins or apples. You can buy ready-mixed products for this, but you can also make your own birdseed. You can feed them mealworms as a special treat.
With our Plantura all-season feed for wild birds, you can also support blackbirds all year round - because in addition to energy-rich ingredients for the winter, it also contains valuable proteins and extra feed lime for expectant bird parents in spring.
Tip: In addition to the feed, you can also build the bird feeder yourself. Even if blackbirds are not particularly choosy about these, you will find practical tips for implementation here.
Which nest boxes are suitable for blackbirds?
Blackbirds prefer so-called semi-hollow boxes. Although these are protected from the weather by a roof, they have a larger entrance hole instead of a small oneOpening, which should be six centimeters high for targeted blackbird extraction.
Tip: Here, too, you can lend a hand and easily build a nesting box yourself with the help of our practical instructions.
How can you support blackbirds?
If you want to make your garden bird-friendly in addition to the artificial nesting and food options, you can achieve this with a number of useful plants. The blackbird also benefits from the promotion of insects - for example through our Plantura beneficial insect magnet, which offers a habitat for a wide range of species.
If you don't remove the leaves in your garden in winter, you will ensure that many insects can find shelter from the cold temperatures. Of course, the blackbird is also happy about this, which you can often hear rustling through the leaf litter and looking for food in the late spring.
In combination with a bird feeder, it is always a good idea to install a bird bath in the garden. This can consist of a simple, flat bowl, in which the birds like to cool off in the summer - there is no real distinction between a bird bath and a bird bath. This also pleases all other garden birds, for example the blue tit.