The Yellow-headed Blackbird breeds in the grassland marshes of western Canada. Breeding Bird Survey data indicate that the Canadian population of this common species has shown little overall change since 1970. However, the population has fluctuated widely within this period and shows large regional variation. The abundance of Yellow-headed Blackbirds fluctuates with climatic cycles that affect the water levels in western marshes (Lederer et al. 1975); any long-term reduction in water tables within its range will likely result in lower abundance.
Numbers of Yellow-headed Blackbirds tend to increase with higher water levels and decrease as water levels decline (Lederer et al. 1975). Water table levels not only increase the amount of suitable breeding habitat, but enhance the suitability of that habitat. Fluctuations in annual precipitation drove large population changes throughout the species' range in North America from 1970 to 1990 (Twedt and Crawford 1995). If water levels continue to decline on the Canadian prairies as some have predicted (Schindler and Donahue 2006), Yellow-headed Blackbird populations may be affected. Other factors affecting Yellow-headed Blackbird abundance include pollution, predators (including raccoons and domestic cats), and climate change (Henning and Hinz 2017).
Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:
Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.
