Yellow-headed blackbirds take the best nesting sites from red-winged blackbirds.

Yellow-headed blackbirds are much larger then their red-winged counterparts.

Every spring, I notice that it's the red-winged blackbirds that show up first to stake out a territory for breeding.  If they have chosen a nesting area that has some reeds and shallow water, it is unlikely that they will be evicted.  However, when the larger yellow-headed blackbirds show up, all bets are off if they have chosen a large reed bed in deep water (up to 3 or 4 feet).

Red-winged blackbirds are not super choosy about where they nest, as long as there are some reeds and standing water present.  More successful males will want a better territory, one that one or more females will approve of.  And they will defend it, against other males of the same species.

Yellow-headed blackbirds are more picky, insisting on large reed beds in deep water.  They also usually arrive later than the red-wings do, but that is not a problem for them.  That's because they are bigger, both in size and bulk.  They will pick a spot and evict any other blackbird species.  If a male red-winged blackbird happens to be in an area of interest, it will be chased away.  He will also chase off other yellow-heads, although that is a much tougher task.

Once territories have been established in a large reed bed, you will find the yellow-headed blackbirds closer to the deeper water.  The red-winged blackbirds will nest towards the outside of the pond where the water isn't as deep.  It's not a preference; it's forced upon them.  The best, safest, choicest breeding areas are taken by the larger birds.  The good news is that red-winged blackbirds can successfully breed in areas that are not favoured by yellow-heads.  The bad news is that these areas tend to be more heavily predated, offer less camouflage, and may offer less food availability.  

The red-winged blackbird population of North America is between 125-250 million individuals, while yellow-headed blackbirds number just above 10 million.  So, even though the yellow-headed blackbirds get the best nesting site, the red-winged blackbirds get the last laugh.  They outnumber their larger competitors by at least 10:1.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com

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