Dickcissel

Photo by Stan Tekiela

by Stan Tekiela
© NatureSmart

September 16, 2024

We people love to group, label, and pigeon-hole what we see and experience around us in nature. I believe it helps us to understand and organize in our brains the vast number of species that we share the planet with. But like most things, we often take labeling and grouping a little too far from time to time. It is in our nature to do these kinds of things.

I was thinking about this the other day while photographing a cool little bird that I don’t see very often. While driving through a wildlife refuge with a couple other photographers I could clearly hear the song of a Dickcissel. Yes, you read that correctly and no I didn’t misspell the name of this bird.

The Dickcissel (Spiza americana) is a sparrow sized bird that is in the Cardinal family (Cardinalidae). However, this bird has given taxonomists a challenge in determining its closest relatives. In the past it was grouped into the New World Sparrows and later moved into the Blackbird family. For now, it seems to have found a home being grouped into the Buntings, which is a type of Cardinal.

Its common name comes from the loud and clear song that the male sings while perched at the top of any small tree, shrub, fence post or even a tall weed stalk. The male repeats a song that sounds like “See-see – dick, dick, cissel, cissel” hence the common name “Dick Cissel”.

These birds are erratic wanderers. This means that large flocks of Dickcissels move across the middle of the North American continent and show up in different regions or places each year. Some years you will see Dickcissels all over the place and other years none at all. They prefer pastures, fields, prairies, and other open habitats such as savannahs.

They migrate by the hundreds and thousands after spending their winters in Central America (northern Venezuela and northern Colombia). No matter what habitat or what part of the country they show up in, the males locate an obvious perch and belts out his territorial song. This song is loud, crisp and clear. He sings from late spring into early summer. The song will establish his territory and attract a mate. This is the best and easiest way to identify the Dickcissel.

Similar to other buntings, the Dickcissel feeds on the ground eating mainly small insects and seeds. Outside of the nesting season, when they are in large migratory flocks, they feed in agricultural fields on any spilled grain or descend upon a field of grain that hasn’t been harvested. This is why farmers tend to not like this bird. But they are doing what they need to do, just to survive.

The Dickcissel is a very interesting looking bird. It is often described as a conglomeration of several other birds smashed into this one dynamic songster. He has a lemon-yellow chest that streaks down into the center of the belly. He has a black bib under his chin. The bib is outlined in white which makes it really stand out. The male has a yellow and white line that runs through the eye. But it’s the males back that really stands out. It is a warm rusty brown. Some people describe this bird as a mini version of the Meadowlark. It has a large gray bill that is easy to see, especially when the male is singing. The female is a duller version of the male.

So, the other day, I was delighted when we heard a male Dickcissel singing while driving through the refuge. I pulled over my truck and we all got out, trying to not to move in a way that would scare the bird. We all captured a few distant images before we started moving forward.

The ground was covered in Poison Ivy, making the trek out into the prairie very challenging. Finding our way through the Poison Ivy while keeping an eye on the bird wasn’t easy but eventually, we got close enough to capture some stunning images using very long lenses, and yet not disturb the bird. We turned and made our way back to the road, all the while talking about how cool this bird is and how we don’t see it very often. Until next time…

Stan Tekiela is an author / naturalist and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to capture images of wildlife. He can be followed on www.instagram.com and www.facebook.com. He can be contacted at his website www.naturesmart.com.