Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) | Affiliated Manuscripts | Further Data

Occurrence in Amherst & Connecticut Valley, Mass.
C19

Common summer resident

April - September

C20

In the hill-country a locally common summer resident of grasslands, either wet levels or hill-top hayfields; in the valley a common summer resident and more common transient in May, August, and early September

March - October

C21

Uncommon summer resident

May - September

Habitat
Prairies and meadows; marshes during migration. (National Audubon Society)
Nest Materials
Nest of coarse dead grasses and weed stems on the ground in open fields. (Clark 1906; allaboutbirds.org)
19th-20th Century Field Notes
BOBOLINK . Male , in breeding plumage , black ; back of head , buff ; back , ashy - white . Male in fall , female , and young , yellowish - brown above ; brownish - yellow beneath ; everywhere above streaked with black . Length , 6 1 - 2 — 7 1 - 2 inches . Common summer resident . Earliest arrival , April 27th ; departs in September . Raises 2 broods . Eggs 4 - 6 , stone - gray , mottled and spotted with various shades of brown . Nest of grass on the ground in open fields . Eggs laid early in June and middle of July . Feeds on insects , seeds , etc . Beneficial in the North . The male is a very fine singer in May and early June .

—H.L. Clark, 1887

21st Century Conservation Notes

Declining significantly in recent decades; loss of nesting habitat is a likely cause. (audubon.org)*