In grass or sagebrush-dominated habitats throughout the state, the song and striking appearance of the Western meadowlark create one of the most familiar and endearing avian images in Oregon.  It's one of  Oregon's most recognizable birds with its bold yellow breast and belly with a distinct black V across the chest and its habit of perching on fences along roadsides.  Fittingly, it was chosen as Oregon's state bird by a vote of Oregon schoolchildren ratified by the Legislature in 1927.

It is one of the most widely distributed open-country species in the arid desert country of eastern Oregon. It can be found in the state year-round, although most birds in eastern Oregon migrate out of the state in winter. It breeds in scattered locations along the coast, in western Oregon valleys, and throughout desert shrub-steppe, grasslands, and agricultural areas of eastern Oregon. In western Oregon, it is most common as a breeding species in the Rogue Valley. Wintering populations are generally higher than breeding populations.

The Western Meadowlark is an Oregon Conservation Strategy Species in the Willamette Valley ecoregion where much of its habitat has been disturbed by human activities. 

Hear the song of the Western meadowlark

Photo by Charlotte Ganskopp