An Unusual Common Grackle in Central New York State Roys

An unusual Common Grackle in central New York State RoyS. Slact•and Harry E. Slack,III During the spring of 1977 the authorswere trap- ping and banding CommonGrackles (Quiscalus quiscula)at a colonynear Phoenix,New. York (coordinates 431-0761].The senior author had begun banding studiesat this colony during the springof 1976.On 5 May 1977a CommonGrackle was banded (1213-89509]as a hatching-year(HY), this colony.Exposed culmen (28 mm) and tarsus unknownsex bird. This paper discussesthis bird length(22 mm) are alsowithin the measurement in relation to the data collected at the colony to rangesfor adultfemales (culmen 25-29 mm; tarsus date and raises some questionsconcerning the 20-26mm] and indicatethat the bird was nearly originof the bird. full grown.The factthat this bird was captured in a The CommonGrackle is a commonbreeding bird Pottertrap baited with sunflowerseeds and was in New York State.Nestlings have been reported notbeing fed by parentsalso is indicativeof a bird from 3 May to 28 Juneand fledglingsfrom 18 May that was not recently fledged. All of these to 29 July(Bull 1974].During the two yearsof band- observations would indicate that this bird ing at the Phoenix colony, the earliest nestlings probablyfledged in early to mid-Apriland would were bandedon 13 May 1976at an estimatedage of have hatchedfrom an eggthat would have been ten days. Using figuresfor incubation time given laid around mid-March. Thus, questionsarise con- by Bent (1958] and Harrison (1975), we can es- cerningthe originof thisbird. timate that the earliest nestling would have With the winter weather of 1976-1977 and the fact hatchedfrom an eggthat was laid on approximate- that severeweather persistedin centralNew York ly 20 April. The earliestegg date for New York intolate April, it wouldseem unlikely that a local Statethat is knownto the authorsis 12 April (Bull nestlingwould have survived. Where then was the 1974].It is these dates that raise some questions originof the bird?Is it possiblethat thisgrackle concerningthe bird bandedon 5 May. was from a nest located much farther south and If we assumeapproximately 12 daysuntil fiedging that it migratednorth with other grackleswhen (Bent1958], and that the bird was capturedon the theybegan to returnto theirnesting grounds? If so, sameday that it fledgedfrom the nest, then the mightnot its parentsalso move north and possibly bird would have hatchedon or about 24 April. nestagain? The authorswould be interestedin the Assuming11 days of incubation as given by commentsof otherswho have bandedgrackles at Harrison (1975],the egg would have been laid nestingcolonies, particularly in southernstates around13 April. Thiswould be within oneday of where coloniesmight disband earlier in the year. the earliest egg date known for the state and Literature cited certainlymuch earlier than previouslynoted at Bent, A.C. 1958.Life histories of North American this colony. These assumptions,however, are blackbirds,orioles, tanagers and allies. U.S. basedupon the bird havingbeen capturedon the Nat. Mus. Bull, 211. sameday thatit fledged,but thisassumption is not Bull, J. 1974. Birds of New York State. supportedby data or observationsnoted by the Doubleday/Natural History Press, Garden authors. City The bird was banded as an HY because it was Harrison, H.H. 1975.A field guide to birds' nests. capableof sustainedflight. Feather development HoughtonMifflin Co., Boston.• also indicatesthat the bird was not just out of the (RSS):Terrestrial Environmental Specialists, Inc., nest.The wingchord (124 mm) and tail length(115 8398Oswego Road, Liverpool, NY 13088. mm]were justwithin the lowerlimits of the range of measurementsfor thirty-one adult females (HES): Serology Dept., West Virginia State (wing 123-135mm; tail 115-135mm) measuredat HygienicLaboratory, South Charleston, WV25303. Page14 NorthAmerican Bird Bander Vol.4, No. I .

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