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Help develop a Bird ID tool!

Eastern Meadowlark

Sturnella magna ORDER: PASSERIFORMES FAMILY: ICTERIDAE

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

The clear, melodious whistles of the Eastern Meadowlark are a familiar and welcome sound across farms and grasslands in eastern North America. Eastern and Western meadowlarks are closely related; the two species are very difficult to distinguish except by voice and location, but they do not readily hybridize where their ranges meet.

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Appearance

Blackbirdlike
Blackbirdlike
Typical Voice

Adult Description

  • Medium-sized stocky songbird with a short tail.
  • Throat, chest, and belly yellow.
  • Black "V" across chest.
  • Back brown and streaked.
  • Outer tail feathers white.

Immature Description

Juvenile similar to adult, but with head stripes less sharp, paler overall, and with dusky spots or flecks on chest instead of black V.

Range Map Help

Eastern Meadowlark Range Map
View dynamic map of eBird sightings

Field MarksHelp

  • Breeding adult
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    Eastern Meadowlark

    Breeding adult
    • Stocky, short-tailed songbird
    • Bright yellow underparts with black "V"-shaped mark on breast
    • Long, pink legs with large feet
    • Streaked flanks and patterned back
    • © Cleber Ferreira, Joe Overstreet Road, Florida, April 2011
  • Breeding adult
    Zoom In

    Eastern Meadowlark

    Breeding adult
    • Stocky-bodied with sharp, pointed bill
    • Bright yellow below with black "V" on breast
    • Streaked flanks
    • Black stripe behind eye and yellow above
    • © Joe Povenz, Michigan, May 2010
  • Nonbreeding adult
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    Eastern Meadowlark

    Nonbreeding adult
    • Stocky songbird with sharp, pointed bill
    • Yellow on breast and above eye more muted in winter
    • Streaky-patterned back
    • © Ed Schneider, Peytonsville Road, Williamson County, Tennessee, February 2009
  • Breeding adult
    Zoom In

    Eastern Meadowlark

    Breeding adult
    • Stocky-bodied, short-tailed songbird
    • Often sings from exposed perches
    • Bright yellow underparts with black "V" on breast
    • Streaked flanks
    • © Joe Povenz, Michigan, May 2010
  • Breeding adult
    Zoom In

    Eastern Meadowlark

    Breeding adult
    • Stocky songbird with long, pink legs and large feet
    • Streaked flanks and patterned back
    • Sharply pointed bill
    • Bright yellow breast with black "V" mark
    • © Ken Schneider, Nelson Lake/Dick Young Forest Preserve, Kane County, Illinois, May 2011
  • Nonbreeding adult
    Zoom In

    Eastern Meadowlark

    Nonbreeding adult
    • Stocky with short tail and sharp, pointed bill
    • Colors more muted in winter
    • Long legs and large feet
    • Black stripe behind eye and yellow above
    • © Phillip Simmons, Joe Overstreet Landing, Kissimmee, Florida, January 2010
  • Nonbreeding "Lilian
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    Eastern Meadowlark

    Nonbreeding "Lilian's" adult
    • "Lilian's" subspecies of Southwest US shows bold, contrasting head stripes
    • Sharp, pointed bill
    • Scalloped and patterned back
    • Yellow above eye
    • © Ned Harris, Sulphur Springs Valley, Arizona, December 2009

Similar Species

  • Adult
    Zoom In

    Western Meadowlark

    Adult
    • Very similar to Eastern Meadowlark
    • Malar stripe at base of bill is bright yellow in Western, white in Eastern
    • Best separated by voice
    • © Ganesh Jayaraman, Laguna Avenue, Coyote Valley, California, January 2010
  • Adult female
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    Red-winged Blackbird

    Adult female
    • Similar to Meadowlarks, but with heavily streaked breast
    • No yellow on underparts
    • Black bill
    • Shorter, thinner black legs
    • © hjhipster, Forsythe NWR, Oceanville, New Jersey, May 2010

Similar Species

  • Western Meadowlark extremely similar, but paler, with thinner black barring on wings and tail feathers, and mostly yellow mustache stripe beside the yellow throat instead of white. Songs and calls different, with the song of the Western Meadowlark being more complex and musical.