The rusty blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) is a medium-sized New World blackbird, closely related to grackles ('rusty grackle' is an older name for the species). It is a bird that prefers wet forested areas, breeding in the boreal forest and muskeg across northern Canada, and migrating southeast to the United States during winter. Formerly abundant, the rusty blackbird has undergone one of the most rapid declines of any abundant bird species in North America in recent years, for reasons that are not well understood. Adults have a pointed bill and a pale yellow eye. They have black plumage with faint green and purple gloss; the female is greyer. 'Rusty' refers to the brownish winter plumage. They resemble the western member of the same genus, the Brewer's blackbird; however, Brewer's has a longer bill and the male's head is iridescent green. (Source: Wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA)