{"id":8027,"date":"2013-04-04T05:13:37","date_gmt":"2013-04-04T11:13:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=8027"},"modified":"2025-10-30T06:14:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-30T11:14:11","slug":"male-boat-tailed-grackle-portrait","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/04\/04\/male-boat-tailed-grackle-portrait\/","title":{"rendered":"Male Boat-tailed Grackle portrait"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Boat-tailedBoat-tailed Grackle male – Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1\/1000, ISO 250, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 260mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Boat-tailed Grackles are very common in Florida and many people consider them a nuisance because they will frequent areas where people leave food and trash around and these birds will scavenge in\u00a0those locations for food.<\/p>\n

I think of how opportunistic Boat-tailed Grackles can be because they have adapted to human presence and will clean up the edible pollution we leave behind while we “recreate”.<\/p>\n

Male Boat-tailed Grackles\u00a0have velvety black feathers that glow in the right light with iridescence purples, blues, teals and greens.<\/p>\n

This male Boat-tailed Grackle posed on top of a sign near the parking lot for the Celery Fields<\/span><\/a> of Sarasota, Florida in January of 2009.<\/p>\n

The area used to be a commercial celery farming operation but is now a great area for Sandhill Cranes in the winter and can be very birdy at times.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Boat-tailed Grackle photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Male Boat-tailed Grackles have velvety black feathers that glow in the right light with iridescence purples, blues, teals and greens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":162238,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,2177,2178,25,2179],"tags":[4004,3813,3483,4781,4142,4779,4780,4062,4046,4782,373],"class_list":["post-8027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-boat-tailed-grackles","category-celery-fields","category-florida","category-sarasota","tag-adult","tag-blackbird","tag-blackbirds","tag-boat-tailed-grackle","tag-close-up","tag-grackle","tag-grackles","tag-male","tag-portrait","tag-quiscalus-major","tag-winter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/boat-tailed-grackle-male-mia-mcpherson-7130.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-25t","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":111340,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/03\/19\/urban-bird-male-great-tailed-grackle\/","url_meta":{"origin":8027,"position":0},"title":"Urban Bird: Male Great-tailed Grackle","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 19, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"While I was walking around my local pond three days ago I enjoyed having a male Great-tailed Grackle in my viewfinder for a bit. He was strolling along nearby.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Great-tailed Grackle going for a stroll, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-urban-mia-mcpherson-6010.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-urban-mia-mcpherson-6010.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-urban-mia-mcpherson-6010.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-urban-mia-mcpherson-6010.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":61086,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/10\/30\/male-great-tailed-grackle-portraits\/","url_meta":{"origin":8027,"position":1},"title":"Male Great-tailed Grackle Portraits","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 30, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"I don't often get to have Great-tailed Grackles in my viewfinder let alone have them close enough to take portraits of them so when the opportunity presents itself, I jump at the chance.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Great-tailed Grackle portrait with grass in the background, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-close-up-in-grass-mia-mcpherson-5124.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-close-up-in-grass-mia-mcpherson-5124.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-close-up-in-grass-mia-mcpherson-5124.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-close-up-in-grass-mia-mcpherson-5124.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":101491,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/04\/09\/spring-male-great-tailed-grackle-portraits\/","url_meta":{"origin":8027,"position":2},"title":"Spring Male Great-tailed Grackle Portraits","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 9, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday morning I had fun taking spring male Great-tailed Grackle portraits because these males were displaying and not paying attention to me or my camera.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Great-tailed Grackle calling portrait, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/great-tailed-grackle-adult-male-portrait-mia-mcpherson-5934.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/great-tailed-grackle-adult-male-portrait-mia-mcpherson-5934.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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Grackle males displaying, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-adult-male-displaying-2538.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-adult-male-displaying-2538.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-adult-male-displaying-2538.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-adult-male-displaying-2538.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":33887,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2015\/12\/04\/the-five-oclock-great-tailed-grackle-cacophony\/","url_meta":{"origin":8027,"position":4},"title":"Five O’clock Great-tailed Grackle Cacophony","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 4, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Since the freezing temperatures arrived in my neighborhood I have been listening to a five o'clock Great-tailed Grackle cacophony nightly.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Great-tailed Grackle male on a fence post at Farmington Bay WMA, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-mia-mcpherson-9912.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-mia-mcpherson-9912.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-mia-mcpherson-9912.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/great-tailed-grackle-male-mia-mcpherson-9912.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100909,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/03\/18\/male-great-tailed-grackle-whatchu-lookin-at\/","url_meta":{"origin":8027,"position":5},"title":"Male Great-tailed Grackle – Whatchu Lookin’ At?","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 18, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"When I photographed this Great-tailed Grackle male in a pine yesterday I was torn between focusing on taking photos of him and laughing out loud.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Great-tailed Grackle male in a pine close up, Salt Lake County, 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