The female Red-winged Blackbird has an overall brown appearance. When a birder looks closer they can see the tan eyebrow stripe, malar and auriculars. They have heavy streaking on the chest, breast, flanks, and under-tail coverts. They have two faint wing-bars, tan scapulars and lesser coverts. The bill is thick at the base, then the lower mandible curves to meet the upper mandible, which does not curve, rather appears flush at the angle of the head.

The male Red-winged Blackbirds' feathers are completely black, except for a part of their wing coverts, which are red, fading into yellow at the end. When singing their Oo-blek call, they inflate all their feathers, fan out their tail and wings and raise their posture (photo 1 above). The red on wings will sometimes not be seen, only the yellow is shown (Photo 2). The male also sometimes has brown specks on the back of neck. In the shilouette of the male, you can occasionally make out the red on the wings (Photos 6,7, 8 above).

These are the kep and seer calls repeated back and forth. Notice how when the kep call is made the tail usually flicks up, which also happens with the seer call, but more rarely so. The bill opens almost all the way on the seer calls, but not as much on the kep. The Red-winged Blackbird does not have to be stationary for these calls to be made, as seen in this video. These are also calls are made exclusively by the male, as are most of the Red-winged Blackbirds' calls.

This a double-syllable set of seer calls followed by kep calls, with a few Oo-blek calls in the background. These are also calls are made exclusively by the male, as are most of the Red-winged Blackbirds' calls.

The male Brown-headed Cowbird resembles the male Red-winged blackbird, but you can tell them apart by the head. The Brown-headed Cowbird has a brown head (hence the name) while the Red-winged blackbird does not. The Brown-headed Cowbird also lacks the red median coverts. The female Cowbird can resemble the female Red-winged blackbird, but they can be differentiated by the fact that the female Cowbird has a white throat.

The Common Grackle resembles the male Red-winged blackbird, but there are a few key differences. Grackles have an overall sheen, wether blue, purple, or green, that can be seen at certain angles, while Red-winged blackbirds do not. Grackles have yellow eyes, while Red-winged blackbirds' eyes appear black. Red-winged blackbirds have the red median coverts, while Grackles do not. Common Grackles usually seen foraging in groups in the dense forest and open field while Red-winged blackbirds are not.

Rusty Blackbirds are not seen here year round, and are most common during migration and winter, while Red-winged blackbirds can bee seen here all year. Rusty Blackbirds have an overall gray appearance that can seem black in dark lighting, but lack the red median coverts. Some Rusty Blackbirds have a faint bronze breast, hence the name. Rusty Blackbirds also wade in in the water, while Red-winged Blackbirds never do.

European Starlings travel in groups and forage in fields and urban settlements. They have no fear of human structures, and will go many places Red-winged Blackbirds will not. Starlings have yellow bills, small white spots, and an overall sheen that Red-winged blackbirds do not. Their bills also protrude at a sharper angle than those of Red-winged blackbirds.