Grackles Are Preparing To Migrate South

Here at the store we hear a lot of complaints about the loud and rowdy Common Grackle, especially in springtime and, well, now. During the summer months Grackles pair up to nest and raise young, so they aren’t coming to our yards in large flocks. But, as they prepare for fall migration, they can amass in the hundreds foraging for food and scaring away all our favorite birds.

Grackles eat just about anything we serve up to our more “desirable” birds, which is why they love our yards so much. One seed they are not very fond of though is safflower. If you are experiencing a Grackle infestation in your yard, you may want to temporarily change out the seed you normally feed and replace it with safflower. Here at the store safflower is available in loose seed and in seed cylinders.

Other ways to discourage Grackles from invading is to put out our Eliminator squirrel-proof feeder, which can be set to close down on large birds. Tube feeders and some of our other feeders can also be outfitted with cages that don’t allow larger birds to get to the seed. 

You can also decide just to wait them out. Grackles are just beginning to gather back into large flocks in September, but by mid to late October those birds will be flying off to their wintering grounds. Common Grackles don’t migrate far. In fact, if you miss your Grackles, you only need to travel as far New Jersey to visit them!

Here’s a fun fact from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: “In winter, Common Grackles forage and roost in large communal flocks with several different species of blackbird. Sometimes these flocks can number in the millions of individuals.” 

How many Grackles are you seeing in your yard?