BIRDS OF NEW YORK 247 



carried in a keeled shape. Head, neck and upper breast deep purplish, 

 steely blue or peacock blue; wings and tail purplish with metallic reflections, 

 the outer flight feathers almost plain black. The whole body bronzy or 

 brassy with changeable sheen. At a distance, however, the bird appears 

 to be uniform black. Iris straiv colored; bill and feet blackish. The body 

 feathers, especially those of the back, are without the purplish and bluish 

 rainbows seen on the feathers of the true purple grackle. Female: 

 Smaller and duller. 



Length cT 13-13.50 inches, 9 12-12.50; extent 15.75-19; wing 5.63; 

 tail 5.05; bill 1.2; tarsus 1.48; weight 5-6 ounces. 



Distribution. The Bronzed grackle inhabits eastern North America 

 from Great Slave lake, Keewatin, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland to 

 Colorado, northern Mississippi, western Pennsylvania, New York and 

 Massachusetts. He is thus to be regarded a bird of the Mississippi valley, 

 and not of the Atlantic coastal plain which is inhabited by the Purple 

 grackle. In New York this subspecies is found throughout all the western 

 portion of the State as well as the northern portion and, in fact, in all the 

 State except the lower Hudson valley, Long Island, vStaten Island, Man- 

 hattan island and adjacent country. It passes the winter from the Ohio 

 valley to southern Texas. In New York it is a common summer resident, 

 abundant in some localities, arriving from the 26th of February to the 

 loth or 1 8th of March and departing for the south from the ist to the 20th 

 of November. A few specimens are sometimes found throughout the 

 winter in the southern portion of the State, but this occurrence is rarer 

 than with the Red-winged blackbird and Cowbird. 



The Bronzed grackle, or Crow blackbird as he is almost universally 

 called in this State, is principally an inhabitant of the cleared lands, 

 but is found as far up in the Adirondacks as Elk lake. Flowed land and 

 Boreas pond, and on the highlands of western New York keeps more 

 particularly to the river valleys and lake shores. He feeds almost entirely 

 on the ground and during the breeding season does a great deal of good 

 by destroying cutworms, wire worms, beetles and caterpillars and later in 

 the summer feeds largely upon grasshoppers. At this season, however, 

 he partakes more or less freely of berries, cherries, green peas, and, in the 



