Blackbirds on Broadmeade

As I write this the central Texas heat has abated just a little bit, and fall bird migration is in full swing. Lots of interesting species are moving through the area including Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Baltimore Oriole, Yellow Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Wood Pewee, and Wilson's Warbler. In Mid-September, I saw the first ducks of the season: five Blue-winged Teal on the creek just on the eastern edge of the T&C playing fields. I've added a few birds to my neighborhood list, including House Wren, Dickcissel, Summer Tanager, Blue Grosbeak, and Upland Sandpiper. The current total number of species is 138!

One of my goals for this column is to talk about birds that aren't too hard to see. Birding can be a frustrating hobby because many birds are small, quick, and tend to hide behind leaves. But there is a lot to be learned and enjoyed about the bigger birds that are easier to see and blackbirds are a great example. In our neighborhood the common blackbirds are grackles and starlings. (Starlings are not actually blackbirds but are locally numerous and very similar.) These are birds that can easily be seen in trees, perched on wires, or hunting for insects on lawns. Less common in the area are cowbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds, orioles, and meadowlarks.

Some generalizations can be made about blackbirds (family Icteridae). They are mostly gregarious and gather together in mixed species flocks to feed or roost or nest. They are mostly sexually dimorphic, which means the males and females have different plumages. Their gurgling, trilling voices are often loud and have a certain similarity across the whole family. But the voices are also unique to each species and can be used to help identify them. Most blackbirds have benefited from the changes people have made to the environment. Several are amazingly successful in urban settings and many can be agricultural pests. They eat all kinds of plants and animal materials, including many insects and some crops.

Our most numerous true blackbird is the grackle and we have two kinds: Great-tailed Grackle and Common Grackle.

Great-tailed Grackles are the largest blackbird in our area and they are named for their large wide tails. The males are glossy blue-black all over with a yellow eye. The females are slightly smaller with proportionally smaller tails and are not glossy at all - they range from medium to dark brown. Great-tailed Grackles are infamous in Austin for their communal roosting habits in the trees in shopping centers (and on UT campus). They flock together sometimes in the thousands and make an incredible site and sound, and leave an incredible mess. A hundred years ago Great-tailed Grackles were rare in Austin and usually only extended as far north as south Texas. But since then they have been expanding north by learning how to live in urban settings and now their range includes most of the southwestern United States. In our neighborhood I see Great-tailed Grackles in small numbers among the houses catching insects on lawns, and sometimes in larger flocks around the Town and Country playing fields.

Common Grackle is the other species of grackle we have around here. Males and females look alike. From the shoulders up, they are glossy blue-black like the male Great-tailed. But the rest of their bodies are a bronzy brown color. If you look closely you can usually see a distinct line where the glossy blue-black ends and the bronzy brown begins. They are slightly smaller than Great-tailed Grackles and have proportionally shorter tails. Common Grackles share the yellow eye and long heavy bill of the Great-tailed Grackle. Common Grackles have also greatly expanded their range by taking advantage of urban development. Originally in the eastern United States, they have been expanding westward in the last 50 years and now occur in most of Texas. they have been helped by agricultural practices too. In particular, the planting of "shelterbelts" between fields to block wind created habitat Common Grackles liked. In my experience Common Grackles tend to be a little less urban than Great-tailed. They perefer more trees which is why I see them mostly on our more densely wooded streets. Meadowheath and Stillforest seems to be a popular area for Common Grackles.

European Starlings are not members of the blackbird family, but they are similar enough that I wanted to include them. They are a shorter and stockier bird than the grackles. They have shorter wings and tails and a more direct flight with faster wing beats. Their plumage is the same for males and females, and varies with the time of year from a dull gray brown to an iridescent brown-black with small white flecks. (The iridescence is rather striking in the spring. Often purple and green can be seen as they catch the light.) The bill is heavy, relatively long, and slightly curved. In the spring and summer the bill is yellow. Starlings make all kinds of strange sounds including clicking and buzzing similar to some blackbirds. They also mix in some clear whistles which can help distinguish them. Starlings are an old world species in the myna bird family that was introduced in New York City in 1890 and 1891. Since then they have spread to most of the continent. Like blackbirds, they have an extremely varied diet and often feed and roost in flocks (often with blackbirds). They also have adapted to urban habitats very successfully. Unlike blackbirds, they nest in natural tree cavities or bird houses. Unfortunately they have decreased the numbers of many native bird species by competing with them for these nesting cavities. In our neighborhood I have seen European Starlings everywhere.

Grackles and starlings are great starting points for learning bird identification skills. So next time you see one walking on your lawn, take a closer look and see if you can identify it! I am out birding in the area about once per week. If you have questions or comments or if you are interested in a neighborhood bird walk, email me!

Mikael Behrens
birdingonbroadmeade@gmail.com