Male
Credit: Dan

North American field guide

Dickcissel

Spiza americana

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Identification

Field notes

16 cm (6") Common to abundant grassland bird of central United States to southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan. Fields, meadows, prairies, grainfields, roadsides, winter feeders.

Male: yellow eyebrow stripe. Black "V" bib on a yellow breast under a white chin.

Female: very similar to female House Sparrow but has a lighter eyebrow stripe and some yellow on breast.

Gregarious, especially in winter and migration. Sings from conspicuous perch.

Song: "dick-dick-cissel" repeated; call in flight is an electrical buzzing "bzrrrrt".

 

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Videos

2 videos

Where it lives

Distribution maps

Source legend · original intervals

Loading the rebuilt map…

Unshaded in source · does not imply absence

Generic and winter maps may use different intervals.

Approximate reconstruction of a historical map. Source date unknown.

Geography: Natural Earth
Bird Advisor Identification rules 2 variants 2 rules

These are the observation paths the Bird Advisor can use to identify this species. Each rule is an alternative match.

Dickcissel (Female)

1 rule
Rule 1 16 criteria confidence 5
Did the WINGS have STRIPES or PATCHES ?
No · Unknown
What colour were the WINGS ?
Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Unknown
What SIZE was the TAIL ?
Short · Medium · Long
What SHAPE was the TAIL ?
Square or slightly notched at the end · Unknown
What colour PATTERN if any was on the BACK ?
Streaked, mottled, spotted, or barred · Unknown
What colour was the BACK ?
Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Unknown
What colour PATTERN if any was shown on the BREAST ?
Uniform color · Unknown
What colour was the BREAST ?
Yellow · Unknown
What colour was the THROAT ?
White, or pale (grayish-white) · Yellow · Unknown
What SHAPE was the BILL ?
Straight and slender · Straight and thick · Conical and slender · Conical and thick · Unknown
What LENGTH was the BILL ?
Very short · Short · Medium · Unknown
What were the EYE markings if any ?
Light STRIPE OVER, BEHIND or THROUGH the eye · Unknown
What colour was the TOP of HEAD ?
Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
How BIG was the bird ?
Sparrow-sized
What TYPE of bird was seen ?
Sparrow-like · Songbird (ground or perching bird)
What type of environment was the bird seen in?
Open area: field, prairie, meadow, farmland, tundra · Desert, arid grassland, shrubs, cactus, mesquite · Thickets or shrubs
result:223-dickcissel-female:1:1 Source: 223 Dickcissel (Female), row 1

Dickcissel (Male)

1 rule
Rule 1 16 criteria confidence 5
Did the WINGS have STRIPES or PATCHES ?
No · Unknown
What colour were the WINGS ?
Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Unknown
What SIZE was the TAIL ?
Short · Medium · Long
What SHAPE was the TAIL ?
Square or slightly notched at the end · Unknown
What colour PATTERN if any was on the BACK ?
Streaked, mottled, spotted, or barred · Unknown
What colour was the BACK ?
Brown, or chestnut (reddish-brown) · Unknown
What colour PATTERN if any was shown on the BREAST ?
Uniform color · Unknown
What colour was the BREAST ?
Yellow · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
What colour was the THROAT ?
White, or pale (grayish-white) · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
What SHAPE was the BILL ?
Straight and slender · Straight and thick · Conical and slender · Conical and thick · Unknown
What LENGTH was the BILL ?
Very short · Short · Medium · Unknown
What were the EYE markings if any ?
Light STRIPE OVER, BEHIND or THROUGH the eye · Unknown
What colour was the TOP of HEAD ?
Gray, or blue-gray · Black, purple, or dark · Unknown
How BIG was the bird ?
Sparrow-sized
What TYPE of bird was seen ?
Sparrow-like · Songbird (ground or perching bird)
What type of environment was the bird seen in?
Open area: field, prairie, meadow, farmland, tundra · Desert, arid grassland, shrubs, cactus, mesquite · Thickets or shrubs