Sturnella magna
eastern meadowlark

Sturnella magna is found in the eastern United States, as well as parts of the southwest U.S. and Central America. The summer breeding range includes parts of southern Canada. ("Eastern Meadowlark", 1992; Campbell, 1973)

Eastern meadowlarks breed in native grasslands, pastures, savannas, alfalfa and hay fields, cropland borders, roadsides, orchards, golf courses, airports, reclaimed strip mines, overgrown fields, and other open areas. In the western range, the breeding range also consists of tall-grass prairies and desert grassland. In the winter they are generally found in open country, cultivated fields, feedlots, and marshes. Eastern meadowlarks are generally found in habitats that are more mesic than their close relative, western meadowlarks (S. neglecta). ("Eastern Meadowlark", 1992; Elliott and Read, 1998; Lanyon, 1995)

Eastern meadowlarks are medium-sized songbirds, with long, slender, light gray bills and dark brown eyes. The tails are short and have rigid rectrices. The legs and toes are long. Male S. magna have grayish heads with blackish stripes, a yellow “eyebrow”, and dark crowns with a median stripe. The wings and tail are streaked and barred with dark and light brown. Males have a broad white moustachial stripe and a yellow chin, which is divided from the underparts by a broad black breast band. The underparts turn off-white on the streaked flanks and under the tail coverts. The pale undertail coverts are streaked and spotted dusky black. Females are similar to males except that they are smaller, paler, and have a narrower breast band. Males are slightly larger than females, from 21 to 25 cm in length, females are from 19 to 23 cm. Juvenile eastern meadowlarks have masked black areas and the white areas are buffish. Juveniles also have more brown plumage in the winter. Eastern meadowlark eggs are white, speckled with reddish-brown. When these birds walk, the tail constantly jerks open. These birds fly by beating their wings vigorously and then gliding. ("Eastern Meadowlark", 1992; Birdnature.com, 2002; Campbell, 1973; Lanyon, 1995)

Eastern meadowlarks have an expected lifespan of five years in the wild, which is the same as the high end of its expected lifespan in captivity. The longest know lifespan in the wild is nine years. (Lanyon, 1995)

Eastern meadowlarks are social, forming loose flocks during the fall and winter. These flocks lack a social hierarchy and are simply a loose aggregation of S. magna and occasionally, S. neglecta (western meadowlarks). They use a variety of songs, calls and postures to communicate with other meadowlarks. Also, where eastern and western meadowlark ranges overlap, male eastern meadowlarks will defend against male eastern and western meadowlarks. Males typically defend their territories with posturing and aerial displays.

Both male and female S. magna often preen and stretch, especially in the early morning hours. Stretching, specifically of the legs and wings, usually follows preening. They also tend to scratch their head with their foot, which they bring up over their wing. Sturnella magna bathes in puddles and wet grass. Sturnella magna roosts on the ground in thick grass, with its head under its scapulars and its body resting on the ground. (Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2005a; Lanyon, 1995)

Sturnella magna do not migrate, except for those in the northernmost parts of their range. However, S. magna tend to form flocks during the winter. Also, those S. magna that do migrate, do so during daylight hours, and begin their migration when it begins to freeze and snow. Some of these birds may migrate over 1,000 km to their winter range. Eastern meadowlarks that migrate, leave by the end of November and return to the breeding range in March. (Francq, 1972; Lanyon, 1995)

Home Range

Male S. magna establish their territories in March, and defend their territories throughout the breeding season. During the breeding season the territories change in size and shape depending on population densities, relocations of female activity centers, and changes in habitat suitability. Once the breeding season is over S. magna do not defend or maintain territories. (Francq, 1972; Lanyon, 1995)

The songs of S. magna are one of the first birdsongs of spring. Sturnella magna have a variety of vocal communications. There are begging notes, location notes, dzert, whistle, chatter, weet, primary song, flight song, female song, zeree, and tee-tee-tee. Nestlings and recently fledged juveniles use begging and location notes, which are simple high-pitched notes. These notes enable the parents to find and feed their young. The dzert call indicates mild disturbance. The whistle indicates intense excitement in males or females, such as the presence of a predator, just before a flight song, or immediately after an aerial chase or copulation. Both sexes use the chatter call to indicate excitement such as the presence of a predator or intruder. Females also chatter after copulation and in response to their mates’ primary song. Only males use the primary song, which sounds like seee-yeee, seee-yer. In the courtship period, female S. magna use the female song, during early morning preening. The alarm call of the eastern meadowlark is a short buzzy, dzert. ("Eastern Meadowlark", 1992; Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2005a; Elliott and Read, 1998; Lanyon, 1995)

Posturing and aerial chases are used to attract and pursue possible mates. Jump-flights are used to ward off males that are intruding on another male’s territory. Bill-tilting and tail- and wing-flashing are used in territorial disputes, as is expansion posturing. Expansion posturing is when individuals extend their contour feathers, spread the tail, and draws the head close to the body. Female S. magna use expansion posturing to warn off its mate when the female is unreceptive. If expansion posturing does not succeed in warning off the male, the female will hold its feathers tight against its body and point its gaping bill at the male. Male eastern meadowlarks also use expansion posturing after the formation of the pair bond. ("Eastern Meadowlark", 1992; Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2005a; Elliott and Read, 1998; Lanyon, 1995)

Eastern meadowlarks walk and run on the ground while foraging for food, they also forage by probing beneath the soil. Their diet varies with the season. In the spring they feed mainly on cutworms, grubs, and caterpillars. When summer comes they eat insects, primarily beetles and grasshoppers. In the winter they eat noxious weed seeds and waste grains as well as some wildfruits and occasional carrion from road-kill or predator-kills. (Campbell, 1973; Lanyon, 1995)

Eastern meadowlarks are preyed on by hawks and falcons and occasionally by owls. They are most likely to be preyed upon by owls during the owl’s breeding season. While the owls are raising their young, they are more likely to hunt during daylight hours, in order to catch enough prey to feed the chicks. Hawks and falcons are diurnal, and often hunt in similar habitats. During their nesting season, domestic cats, dogs, foxes, coyotes, and skunks prey upon the eggs and nestlings. Eastern meadowlark coloration helps them to blend in to their grassland surroundings, they can be difficult to spot unless they are on a high perch. (Grossman and Hamlet, 1964; Lanyon, 1995)

Eastern meadowlarks are prey for larger predators and they prey on a variety of insects, including grubs and caterpillars, which could damage the surrounding vegetation. They also act to disperse the sees of plants they eat. Sturnella magna serves as a host for a variety of internal and external parasites, and for brown-headed cowbirds. Brown-headed cowbirds are obligate parasites, which lay eggs in the nests of other species of birds. ("Western Meadowlark", 2003; Birdnature.com, 2002; Campbell, 1973; Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2005c; Grossman and Hamlet, 1964; Lanyon, 1995; Stark, 1940; Taylor, 1969)

Sturnella species eat kernels of sprouting grain, which can destroy portions of newly planted crops. ("Western Meadowlark", 2003)

Sturnella magna eat insects that are crop pests, therefore they act to control pest populations that impact crops. (Campbell, 1973; Lanyon, 1995)

According to the IUCN Red List, the U.S. Federal List, and the State of Michigan List, eastern meadowlarks have no special status. They are not threatened, likely to become threatened, or endangered. This agrees with the Audubon Society's assessment of S. magna. Eastern meadowlarks fall into the Audubon Society's green conservation status, which means that it is of low or no conservation concern. However, S. magna populations have been experiencing a significant population decline, declining by as much as 50% since 1966. (National Audubon Society, 2005)

Eastern meadowlarks are not true larks; rather they belong to the same family as blackbirds and orioles (Icteridae). There are about 18 recognized subspecies of the eastern meadowlark.

The decline of the S. magna populations could be partially due to the industrialization of agriculture, which increases the likelihood of a nest being destroyed by the agricultural machinery and the increased use of row crops which are an unsuitable habitat for these birds. Another possible cause of the decline is apparent predation by cattle. Cattle have been documented destroying nests, sometimes by accident but also by crushing eggs and nestlings with their muzzles and by removing nestlings from the nests. (Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2005c; Nack and Ribic, 2005)