Boat-tailed Grackle female

Quiscalus major

photo by John Borom

The adult female is tawny-brown with darker wings and tail. 

They nest in small colonies, and grasses are used to construct 

a bulky nest placed in trees and other vegetation. Eggs are

white with purplish mottling and number 3 to 4.

Boat-tailed Grackle  male

Quiscalus major

photo by John Borom

This common, noisy grackle seldom strays beyond coastal estuarine marshes.

The species gets its common name from the huge keel-shaped or wedge-shapedn tail, which is particularly evident, both when the bird is in flight and when it is perched.