Common Grackle
Learn to identify the Common Grackle by ear. Master the "rusty gate screech" phrase and tell it apart from similar species.
What the Common Grackle sounds like
A harsh, rising squeak or screech often described as sounding like a rusty gate hinge. Males sing from exposed perches during breeding season.
How to tell it apart
Lessons featuring the Common Grackle
Ready to test your ear? Practice identifying the Common Grackle's sounds in these interactive in-app lessons.
Where you'll hear it
Partially migratory; northern populations migrate south for winter, while southern populations are often year-round residents.
Open areas with scattered trees, agricultural fields, suburban lawns, feedlots, and urban parks. Often found near water and human habitation.
Most active during daylight hours, gathering in large flocks during fall and winter.
How to recognize it by sight
Common Grackles are long-tailed blackbirds with pale yellow adult eyes and glossy, color-shifting plumage. Most have blue-black heads contrasting with bronzy bodies, while southeastern birds can look purple and green overall. Males are larger and glossier than females.
Similar species
Boat-tailed Grackle
Larger size with longer tail
Great-tailed Grackle
Larger with extremely long tail
Brewer's Blackbird
Smaller with shorter tail