Red-Winged Starling

by John James Audubon

Audubon’s image of the “Red-Winged Starling,” which in modern times is known as the Red-Winged Blackbird (Agelaius Phoeniceus), is Plate 67 of the famous work by Audubon, The Birds of America.

Not like usual, lifeless representations of animals of the 19th century, Audubon’s “Red-Winged Starling” tells a story and conveys action through the painting. Completed in Louisiana around 1821 and printed later by engraving by Robert Havell Jr., it shows four birds perched on a graceful Red Maple branch with flowers. The painting beautifully shows the sexual dimorphism of the species through the placement of four different specimens on a Red Maple tree: an impressive black male is shown in flight at the top of the painting, revealing his trademark red and yellow shoulder feathers, while the streaked and brown females and young males feed peacefully below him.