Listen to the common grackle
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the common grackle
The common grackle is a bird in the family Icteridae (order Passeriformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “near threatened”. Adults have a wingspan of about 41 cm and weigh around 120 g.
What does the common grackle sound like?
Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once. Songs tend to be long and patterned and are used to hold territory and attract a mate; calls are short signals for contact, alarm and flight.
The recordings here are labelled as call and song. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The common grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) is an icterid bird found in large numbers through much of North America. It was first described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus and has three officially recognized subspecies. Adult common grackles have a long and dark bill, pale yellow eyes, and a long tail. Adults often have a bluish iridescent appearance on their head, this feature being more pronounced on males. Common grackles can be found widely across North America east of the Rocky Mountains and are highly adaptable to their environment.
Related birds in the genus Quiscalus
More from the family Icteridae
Red-winged blackbird
Agelaius phoeniceus
Brown-headed cowbird
Molothrus ater
Baltimore oriole
Icterus galbula
Venezuelan troupial
Icterus icterus
Shiny cowbird
Molothrus bonariensis
Yellow-headed blackbird
Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
Yellow-rumped cacique
Cacicus cela
Eastern meadowlark
Sturnella magna
Giant cowbird
Molothrus oryzivorus
Crested oropendola
Psarocolius decumanus
Yellow-billed cacique
Amblycercus holosericeus
Frequently asked questions
What does a common grackle sound like?
You can hear 5 recordings of the common grackle on this page, including its call and song. Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once.
Is the common grackle endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the common grackle as “near threatened”.
What family does the common grackle belong to?
The common grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) belongs to the family Icteridae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources & credits
- Call, song · San Pedro Garza García, San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo… by Leonardo Guzman Hernandez – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Sioux Center, Sioux, Iowa, United States by Jonathon Jongsma – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Bear Head Lake State Park, St. Louis, Minnesota, United… by Jonathon Jongsma – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call · Dordt College Prairie, Sioux, Iowa, United States by Jonathon Jongsma – CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Call, song · San Pedro Garza García, San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo… by Leonardo Guzman Hernandez – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q1424486 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Common grackle – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by Rhododendrites – CC BY-SA 4.0