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Dickcissel

Spiza americana ORDER: PASSERIFORMES FAMILY: CARDINALIDAE

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

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Dickcissel Photo

© 2004 Cornell Lab of Ornithology

A sparrow-like bird of the prairie grasslands of the United States, the Dickcissel congregates in huge flocks in migration and on its tropical grassland wintering grounds. The breeding male is colored like a tiny meadowlark, with a black "V" on a yellow chest.

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Calls

  • song
    Recorded by Gregory F. Budney
    • Courtesy of Macaulay Library
    © Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Song a simple, dry, "dick, dick, ciss, ciss, ciss." Call a dry "chek." Flight call a short, buzzy "fpppt," like a Bronx cheer.

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