Great-tailed grackles: annoying, abundant and impressive

Male Great-tailed Grackles have a distinctive sky-pointing routine know as posturing. (Photo by Anita Westervelt)

Published June 7, 2025, in the McAllen Monitor

Story and photos by Anita Westervelt

Two large black great-tailed grackles flew in tandem over the resaca, exhibiting aerial maneuvers in what looked like a well-rehearsed air dance. At the opposite bank, one quickly veered off and disappeared amongst the feathery branches of a honey mesquite tree while the other flew in the opposite direction.

Outside my studio window, a squawking flurry of iridescent black feathers landed all in a fluff next to a female great-tailed grackle that was minding her own business, plucking bugs from the grass. Totally ignored, the flirting male grackle settled his ruffles and nonchalantly hopped away in pursuit of other interests.

On a peak of the roof, a puffed out male great-tailed grackle looked to be performing a macabre dance while pronouncing great wisdoms to the air.

Another male domineering attitude of the Great-tailed Grackle. (Photo by Anita Westervelt)

Instead of writing, I find myself watching the antics of the great-tailed grackles. For bird observing, you can’t go wrong with the great-tailed. They are highly urbanized and not easily disturbed by humans. Not to mention, they are loud and conspicuous.

For the past two months, I have watched female great-tailed grackles probe at the water’s edge, tugging at the weeds with their bill, eventually taking flight with long strands of grass or thin strips of reed, they’ve clipped from the plants.

In town the other day, while I was sitting at a stop light, a grackle flew across the car’s windshield, trailing a long piece of grass, like an airplane towing an advertising banner over the beach.

At home again, with all the energetic activity, I thought it was time for another grackle story. I grabbed my camera and went outdoors prepared to wait for the activity to resume while the birds forgot I had entered their territory. Fairly soon I had captured a surprising scene with my camera. A male great-tailed grackle took flight with an item suspiciously like nest-building material in his bill from where he had been working amongst the bulrushes.

Young male Great-tailed Grackle. (Photo by Anita Westervelt)

 Young male Great-tailed Grackle takes flight with vegetative gift. (Photo by Anita Westervelt)

Most birding websites report that it is the female of a great-tailed grackle pair that gathers materials and constructs the nest. A Birds of the World site mentioned that males may bring some materials or help with repairs. As I didn’t follow the bird’s swift exit from the plants, I don’t know the end result of his vegetative offering.

Whether he was helping with nest building or not, male great-tailed grackles have other important roles, mainly defense. The males stake out territory in February and March; females choose the nest site, generally high up in large trees.

Once an area is selected and the nest building begins, the males can get aggressive in defense of their territories, nests and food sources.

Their defense can begin tame but get pretty fierce. They start with a machismo display of rippling feathers and full out spread of their magnificent tail. If that doesn’t make an opponent fly away, the defender ups his tactics, chortling harsh squawks. Male grackles have a full bag of vocalizations, many sounds designed to ward off other male grackles. If more encouragement is needed, they will actively chase males that encroach on their territory.

When those displays don’t deter an interloping male, it could escalate to a physical fight which can involve grappling, biting and rolling on the ground, possibly inflicting injuries. Male grackles may even be aggressive toward humans or animals that approach their nests.

Male great-tailed grackles also posture. Apparently, it is well known in birding circles. As a part-time birding enthusiast, I was unaware of the proper phrase. I have frequently seen small groups of male great-tailed grackles circle the wagons and point their bills toward the sun. I attributed the action to some sort of ancient sun worshiping ritual. It isn’t that at all.

According to an online Buffalo Bill Center of the West article by Anne Hay, the distinctive sky-pointing is posturing, where males raise their bill toward the sky as a threat display to other males. It is a stance intended to assert dominance. Female grackles apparently choose dominate males for a mate.

The great-tailed grackle is an abundant permanent resident in most of the southern half of Texas. Considered a medium-sized bird, the males appear overall glossy black until the sun hits them at certain angles, revealing iridescent hues of purple, copper, amethyst, blue and green. The females are about half the size of males and are dark brown above with a cinnamon-colored breast; they have a faint iridescent purple patch at each shoulder. Both males and females have yellow eyes.

Male Great-tailed Grackle. (Photo by Anita Westervelt)

Female Great-tailed Grackle scopes out the area before flying up to her nest. (Photo by Anita Westervelt)

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AllAboutBirds, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Texas Breeding Bird Atlas, National Audubon Society, Birds of the World, Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Texas Parks and Wildlife publications were helpful in writing this article.