This male Red-winged Blackbird, photographed at one of our feeders earlier this week, doesn't look like the shiny black Red-wings that are seen in the spring. This bird is in its fall/winter plumage, sporting new feathers, the edges of which, as you see, are marked with brown and buff. The epaulet shows only yellow, the bold red marking the bird shows in the spring now covered. The bird will gain its springtime appearance not by another set of feathers, but by simple wear and tear. The brown and buff edges will wear off, revealing the unmarked black of spring. Wear also will reveal the red epaulet. Not all birds enjoy such a handsome basic plumage. It's called basic, by the way, because this is the plumage grown after the bird's complete (as opposed to partial) molt. It's the non-breeding plumage. The male Red-wing enters spring courtship with an immaculate and glossy black plumage (the better to catch your eye, my dear).
