Bobolink - Male

Finally got the ID of this bird which is Fairly common summer resident in east.
 Male Bobolinks in breeding plumage are visually striking birds. Their plumage has been described as looking like a skunk, a backward tuxedo, or a broken egg running down their back. They are solid black below, with black faces, light yellow napes, black and white streaked backs, and white rumps. Females are buff-brown with streaked backs and plain buff underparts. They have plain faces, dark eye-lines, and dark and light head stripes. They could easily be misidentified as a large sparrow, especially because they have thick, short bills and are smaller than most blackbirds. Males in non-breeding plumage look like females.

Conservation Status

Bobolinks are common throughout most of their range and were formerly considered to be major predators of rice in the southeastern United States. There is less rice grown in the United States now, and the population of Bobolinks has declined in the past few decades due to loss of habitat, so their predation of rice is less of an issue. Partners in Flight lists them as a species-at-risk. Bobolinks are historically more eastern birds and have expanded their range into Washington because of the habitat created by agriculture. In fact, the Toppenish colony near Yakima is probably the westernmost Bobolink colony in North America. Mowing and livestock grazing are both threats to breeding Bobolinks. Preservation of some uncultivated, wet meadow adjacent to hay fields, along with delayed mowing by farmers until the young have fledged, may help maintain Bobolink populations.