An Unfortunate Grackle

Feeding the Blue Jays a little while ago, a peculiar-looking dark bird caught my eye hanging around at the bottom of a cabbage palm. Something about it didn't seem right, and my immediate impression was that the base of the mandible might have been flared, like an Ani's. A Smooth-billed Ani right at my doorstep? Stranger things have been known to happen, I suppose.

But no such luck, for either myself or for the bird. What I had here was a juvenile Common Grackle with a grotesque bill deformity. Tumor-like nodules covered most of both the upper and lower mandibles. Possibly, they grew out of the forehead, too - some of the head feathers looked disheveled.

It was hanging around an adult Common Grackle, which occasionally fed him, so he's still being cared for despite his obvious disadvantages. Whether anyone besides a mother could love that face, I'd be interested to know. 

Poor little guy. If anyone has any information about what condition this is, or what causes it, please let us know in the comments.

An Uncommon Identification Problem

On Saturday morning, Maureen and I took part in the North American Migration Count (NAMC), covering our home turf, Daggerwing Nature Center in Boca Raton. Sadly, the winter migrants have nearly all departed, and we found ourselves warblerless after three hours.

Our highest tally for the day was 85 for White Ibises passing overhead throughout the day. Common (30) and Boat-tailed (25) Grackles were both abundant in the areas close the to the boardwalk, while European Starlings (28) made a strong showing at late morning.

Juvenile Common Grackle

A single Black-crowned Night-heron couldn't decide which direction he wanted to fly, and passed over us, first from one direction, and then the other, shortly after. By the end of the morning, we had also counted Great Blue (3), Little Blue (2), Tricolored (12), and Green Herons (2), and Great Egrets (4). 

An indecisive Black-crowned Night-Heron

The only real surprise came when we reached the end of the boardwalk and found a female cowbird at the top of a snag. Maybe this speaks against me, but I've never seen a cowbird in South Florida. The question we were faced with was, which type is it? Anywhere else in the country, the ID would be definitely point to Brown-headed. But here in South Florida, there's another possibility: Shiny Cowbird. As someone who hasn't got Shiny Cowbird on my life list, I'm admittedly biased. However, my first impression was of that rich brown, unmarked plumage pegged it as a Shiny. The feedback we've received so far is that the stout bill suggests Brown-headed. Would anyone else care to stir up some debate by venturing an ID?

(Probably) Brown-headed Cowbird

With a Starling, who very generously posed for a size comparison