The Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)
is
about the size of a Jay (12 inches) and when seen in the sunlight
reveals the beautiful iridescent colors of its generally black
body. The eyes are yellow. The tail is long and keel-shaped.
The female is smaller and more of a dull brownish black. This
bird isn't known for its song, it rather clucks and screeches.
You'll find this bird on neighborhood lawns,
parks and fields and open woodlands. Its range is on the eastern
two thirds of the US but is expanding into parts of Idaho and
Washington. Also found in Canada. It travels in flocks, especially
in the spring.
Its diet is mostly insects and grain, but
it will also go after the young of small birds as well as the
eggs. It has a bulky nest, similar to a Jay, made of sticks and
lined with grass and placed in a tree or bush. The clutch consists
of 5 pale blue eggs that are speckled with black.
The plush Grackle shown at left is made
by Wild Republic and is part of their Audubon
Birds collection. These birds are unique in that when squeezed
they will utter their own particular call.
