Red winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) are one of the most common and adaptive birds in North America and they are well known for being able to live in a variety of habitats. Their preferred habitat, though, is near water in an area with plenty of thick ground cover. For this reason, the prairie marsh at Payne’s Prairie State Park is ideal for them. This time of year is the breeding season, so most of the females were sitting on nests the last time I visited, but the males were out and about everywhere. There was a little bit of scuffling on occasion if one male got too close to another’s territory, but for the most part there was just a lot of singing. I was lucky enough to catch this fellow in the late afternoon at a quiet time. No other birds happened to be near and he was able to relax and enjoy the peace for a few moments. It was an honor that he was willing to share some of that time with me.