The Melodious Blackbird, Dives dives, is a New World tropical icterid bird. It is a resident breeder from southeastern Mexico to Costa Rica. Its range is expanding. El Salvador was colonised in the 1950s, and eastern Guatemala in the 1960s. Prior to 1989 there was only one Costa Rican record, but it is now easily seen at least as far south as San José, and it is expected to colonise Panama. The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms (as opposed to folk taxonomy). ... Phyla Subregnum Parazoa Porifera (sponges) Subregnum Agnotozoa Placozoa (trichoplax) Orthonectida (orthonectids) Rhombozoa (dicyemids) Subregnum Eumetazoa Radiata (unranked) (radial symmetry) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anemones) Bilateria (unranked) (bilateral symmetry) Acoelomorpha (basal) Orthonectida (parasitic to flatworms, echinoderms, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicatas Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Many - see section below. ... Families Many, see text A passerine is a bird of the giant order Passeriformes. ... The Icterids are a group of small to medium, often colourful passerine birds restricted to the New World. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... Ferdinand Deppe (1794 - 1861) was a German naturalist, explorer and painter. ... Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, c. ... The Icterids are a group of small to medium, often colourful passerine birds restricted to the New World. ... Orders Many - see section below. ... San José is the capital and largest city of the nation of Costa Rica. ...

The Melodious Blackbird inhabits a wide range of habitats, but avoids dense forest and thick undergrowth. It has adapted to human habitation and can be seen in gardens and on lawns.

A breeding pair will give a display in which each bird spreads its tail, extends its wings, and ruffles its plumage. The song is a duet, with a see note, followed by a whit and a Northern Cardinal-like whistle. The call is a metallic puitt. Binomial name Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) The Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) is a member of the cardinal family of birds in North America. ...

Both sexes build a cup nest of plant material 3-7 m high in a bush or tree and line it with mud and dung. The female lays 3-4 brown-blotched blue eggs, which she incubates alone, although the male helps with feeding the chicks. This species is not known to be parasitised by cowbirds, which presumably has also contributed to its success. Brood parasite is a term specifically applied to birds or insects that leave their eggs in the nests of other birds or insects to be raised. ... Species Molothrus rufoaxillaris Molothrus oryzivorus Molothrus aeneus Molothrus bonariensis Molothrus ater Cowbirds are birds belonging to the genus Molothrus in the family Icteridae. ...

Breeding birds are highly territorial, and adults will attack predators like the Brown Jay, but small flocks form outside the nesting season. Binomial name Cyanocorax morio Wagler, 1829 The Brown Jay (Cyanocorax morio) is a large Jay which has the look of a Magpie about it, but is slightly smaller and with a shorter tail, though the bill is larger. ...

The adult Melodious Blackbird is a medium-sized icterid with a rounded tail. The male is 25.5 cm long and weighs 108 g. The slightly smaller female is 23 cm long and weighs 95 g. The adult plumage is entirely black with a bluish gloss, and the bill legs and feet are also black. The iris is brown. Females are identically plumaged to the males, but young birds are brownish black and lack iridescence. There are no subspecies.

The Melodious Blackbird forages mainly on the ground for insects, but will also take nectar and ripening maize ears. Classes & Orders See taxonomy Insects are invertebrate animals of the Class Insecta, the largest and (on land) most widely-distributed taxon within the phylum Arthropoda. ... Binomial name Zea mays L. Maize (Zea mays ssp. ...

This species has benefitted from deforestation, which has allowed its rapid range expansion through creation of suitable habitat.

The natives of Guatemala had a ritual in which they trapped a Melodious Blackbird, a mouse and a grasshopper, and warned them of dire consequences if they continued to damage crops. The three animals were then released to spread the news. Feral mouse A mouse (Plural mice) is a mammal that belongs to one of numerous species of small rodents. ... Families Grasshoppers are herbivorous insects of the suborder Caelifera in the order Orthoptera. ...

References

• BirdLife International (2004). Dives dives. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern

• Jaramillo and Burke, New World Blackbirds ISBN 0-7136-4333-1
• Stiles and Skutch, A guide to the birds of Costa Rica ISBN 0-0814-9600-4