'common grackle feeding'
There have been Common Grackles in my yard for a while now, but it seems as though the males came first & the females followed. The females look nearly identical to the males, but if the light’s right, it’s possible to see that they are actually more brown than black, & they are slightly smaller. They are also slightly less glossy. The birds are ground foragers, but I see them quite often up on the birdfeeder, scaring away the other birds, & eating all the bird seed in a few minutes. They like sunflower seed especially, & often 3 or 4 of them will be on the birdfeeder, all trying to eat at the same time. (If there isn’t enough room in the feeder, they perch on top waiting for a chance at the seed.) Grackles are very aggresive, they have been known to raid nests, & kill & eat other adult birds. However the birds here sort of enjoy them, because they kick tons of seed off the feeding platform when they land to eat.
'common grackle feeding'
Nice blog post! Where I used to live in Southern California, there were huge flocks of Grackles! I saw a flock in the sky that was easily several hundred birds. As ever, your drawing is informative artistic and pleasant. Thanks for such a nice blog!