Blackbird, a common name for a number of birds of black plumage, some of them only distantly related. In America several birds receive this name. The crow-blackbird or purple grackle is one of the common blackbirds; it lives in flocks. The rusty blackbird is less common. The red-winged blackbird is abundant in swamps and marshes of the United States. It is, really, a starling. The common blackbird of Great Britain and Europe is the merle; it is closely related to the American robin, which it resembles in form and habits, but is, of course, black. It is a true thrush.
