By Connie Thompson Imagine my surprise when I glanced outside the living room the other day. I was expecting to see some cute little chickadees in the bird feeder, or possibly the bouncy little white-breasted nuthatch that I occasionally see. Instead I saw a bright yellow eye glaring insolently back at me from an all-black bird. There was that darned grackle again, and this time it brought its friends too. For reasons that I cannot quite explain, the grackles always seem to be 'evil-looking' and I am not sure why. I think its the yellow iris of the eye, which looks totally unnatural in a bird. It is kind of spooky actually and interestingly enough, the juvenile grackles start out with brown eyes which gradually turn pale in November. Common Grackle (male) As a whole though, the grackle is actually quite a beautiful bird. Its head gleams with a beautiful purplish, green or bronze iridescence, whether it is in the sunshine or not. Its body is quite large at about 11 inches long, and is even larger than a robin. The grackles' wings, tail and body are all a glossy, shiny black that seems to reflect its overall healthiness and spunk. The females tend to be only slightly less glossy and their tail tends to be a bit shorter, too. It is not surprising that the grackle is a member of the blackbird family, which also includes orioles. Common Grackle (female) The grackles that we most often see in Michigan are common grackles and are actually the smallest members of their family. Their tails are labeled 'keel' tails, due to its unusual shape, though the common grackle does not have near the tail length that the well-labeled boat-tailed grackle does. It is a good thing that the grackle has some sort of beauty about it, because its song leaves much to be desired. Even though technically the grackle is a songbird, the experts have stretched the term a bit here by including a bird that has a voice most describe as approximating a rusty hinge. One field guide delicately describes the grackles' voice as "a split raspy note," while another described it as "not appealing to human ears." Despite its raspy voice, the grackle is considered a songbird. That does not stop the male grackle from loudly using it in breeding season though. Even if the females are not impressed with his voice, they are certain to notice his puffed-out feathers, spread wings and tail and his thrown-back head with which he loudly proclaims his future love. Later, in August/September when the molting season arrives, the grackles have an unusual habit of shedding all of their tail feathers at once and more than one experienced bird watcher has had a tough time identifying a tailless grackle. Other times the birds may keep only the long central tail feathers, which also looks strange. All in all, the grackle is not usually an obnoxious bird, it is just that it seems to look at we humans a bit differently than most other birds. It is not piggish nor does it take 12-13 seeds at a time out of the feeder like the blue jays do, but it has other less desirable traits. Common Grackles visit backyard feeders. Most people recognize grackles, even when they are mixed with a flock of blackbirds, due to their much larger size. What people do not usually know about is their spring feeding habits. Grackles arrive with the very earliest of the spring birds and they come mixed in with flocks of starlings, blackbirds and other grackles. They fortuitously time their arrival to coincide with the nesting time of other spring birds. The reason for this early arrival is to take advantage of the food readily available in other birds' nests (and we are NOT talking about insects or seeds here). Grackles also feed on small fish, seeds, salamanders, insects, grains and eggs when they can obtain them. They are frequently seen in yards across suburbia America and are frequent bird feeder raiders, where a flock can empty out a feeder in a matter of hours. Grackles prefer open woods and fields, but also like wetlands and the edges of ponds. So suffice it to say that grackles will feed just about anywhere, on anything. - NEVERMORE - It is just possible that those pale eyes are indicators of their excellent eyesight to obtain food, and not just windows into the soul behind. Consider not only ravens as spooky halloween birds, but look towards the grackles as well. "Nevermore" will our feeders remain full while the flocks of grackles are around at this time of the year. Common Grackle Photos courtesy of Sandy Hoover All text copyright of Connie Thompson October 2002 To report any bird sightings or anecdotes, please call me evenings at 906-635-5336 or write to: 14488 S. Ridge Rd., Dafter, MI 49724