Common Grackle

Common grackle:

so it seems that I’ve recently discovered the common grackle, a medium sized bird that slightly resembles a crow or raven at first glance. Of course they’ve been here all along and in large numbers too, yet somehow they’ve escaped my notice, never capturing my imagination. I’m embarrassed to think that I’ve dismissed them as simply a blackbird without distinction, as even their name suggest that there’s nothing very special about them, in fact, most often, they’re considered a nuisance, problematic for farmers, aircraft, and other types of birds.

the common grackle has an image problem.

really though, they’re a beautiful bird, yes, with some issues of population and a somewhat aggressive nature, descending on crops and driving other birds away. But it’s an issue of survival, a grackles instinct to thrive in an often difficult world for birds and people. It’s hard to fault them for the many habits that we seem to share with them, our own large numbers, competition with others species, and consuming a vast amount of resources. And at least we’re not given a label such as “common people” and described as a nuisance species. Perhaps most truly, we’re seeing a bit of our own image reflected back to us with the grackle and like little of what we see.

and it’s easier to blame a bird.