Nicaraguan grackle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Nicaraguan grackle |
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| Conservation status | |
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| Genus: |
Quiscalus
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| Species: |
nicaraguensis
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The Nicaraguan grackle (Quiscalus nicaraguensis) is a type of passerine bird. This means it's a perching bird, like many songbirds. It belongs to a group of birds called grackles. You can find this bird only in Nicaragua and the very northern part of Costa Rica. It's part of the New World blackbird family.
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What Does the Nicaraguan Grackle Look Like?
This grackle is a medium-sized bird. It has a long tail that gets wider at the end. Its bill (beak) and legs are quite long and black. The bird's eye is a pale yellow color.
The male Nicaraguan grackle is about 31 cm (12 inches) long. The female is a bit smaller, around 25 cm (10 inches). Adult males are completely black. Their plumage (feathers) have a shiny, iridescent look. This means they shimmer with different colors in the light. The shine is violet on their belly and tail. It's violet-green on their head, back, and chest. Most of their wings show a blue-green shimmer. The male's tail is V-shaped, rising up from the middle.
Younger males are not as shiny as the adults. They have a brown belly and brown thighs. The female grackle is brown on her upper body. She has a pale stripe above her eye, called a supercilium. This stripe stands out because the feathers around her eye and ear are dark. Her thighs, sides, and the feathers under her tail are dark brown. The rest of her underside is a light, creamy color. It's darkest on her upper chest and lighter on her throat and belly.
How Is It Different from Other Grackles?
There's another bird called the great-tailed grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus). It lives in the same areas. However, the great-tailed grackle is bigger. It has a longer tail and a larger bill. The male great-tailed grackle has less green shine than the Nicaraguan grackle. The female great-tailed grackle is darker underneath. Her supercilium (stripe above the eye) is also less clear.
What Sounds Do They Make?
Nicaraguan grackles make many different sounds. They often have a nasal call, which sounds like it comes from their nose. They also make various whistling notes. Sometimes, you might hear a sharp, rising whine. Their song is a series of whistles. These whistles get faster and more frequent as the song continues.
Where Do Nicaraguan Grackles Live?
These birds are found only in western Nicaragua and northern Costa Rica. They mostly live near Lake Nicaragua and Lake Managua. Their living area has grown a bit. This is because people have cleared forests to create pastures (fields for animals).
The Nicaraguan grackle might be a new bird in Costa Rica. There, it lives in the Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge along the Río Frio river. These birds do not migrate long distances. However, they do move around locally. These movements depend on the seasons and changes in water levels.
Their Favorite Places
Nicaraguan grackles build their nests only in marshlands. But they look for food in other places too. They search in scrubland, wet pastures, and along the edges of lakes and rivers.
How Do Nicaraguan Grackles Behave?
Nicaraguan grackles usually look for food in small groups. They search on the ground for seeds and insects. They often turn over stones or other things to find food hidden underneath. You might also see them looking for food on or around cattle.
Family Life and Reproduction
These birds build their nests in small colonies. They choose bushes or trees. Sometimes, they nest among marsh plants like sedges. Their nest is well-hidden and shaped like a cup. They build it using grass, sedge leaves, and roots.
A female grackle usually lays two or three eggs. The eggs are blue with dark marks. These marks are usually grouped together at the larger end of the egg. Only the female bird sits on the eggs to keep them warm. This is called incubation. But both the male and female grackles help feed the young birds once they hatch.
