71 



97. Scolecophagus carolinus (Mull.). 

 RUSTY BLACKBIRD. 



Male: Black, with greenish reflections; iris, cream-colored. 

 Female: Slaty-blackish, duller beneath; iris, brown. 



Rare but regular migrant. Earliest arrival, March 15 ; 

 leaves for the north the last of April ; appears again in Sept- 

 ember and October. Feeds on insects chiefly. Beneficial. 

 Note, very similar to the squeak of an ungreased wheelbarrow. 



98. Quiscalus quiscula (Linn.'). 



CROW BLACKBIRD. PURPLE GRACKLE. 



Iridescent black; iridescence not specially defined in color or area. 

 Length, 12-13 inches. 



98a. Q. q. avenus (Ridgw.). 

 BRONZteD GRACKLE. 



Iridescence of head, steel-blue; of back, brassy; of wings and tail, 

 violet. Length, 12-13 inches. 



Crow blackbirds are common summer residents in Amherst, 

 but what proportion are "purple grackles" is still to be deter- 

 mined. In the years 1886-89, I took males of both thepurple 

 and bronzed grackles, but unfortunately made no effort to 

 determine their relative abundance. In the first edition of this 

 work, the purple grackle is given as the common form, but in 

 1901, Morris states that the purple grackle is not known to 

 occur at Springfield, and Chapman does not give it as occurring 

 at Cambridge. It seems probable therefore that the common 

 crow blackbird in Amherst is the bronzed grackle, and that the 

 purple grackle is a more or- less irregular visitor. Earliest 

 arrival, March 10; latest departure, Nov. 1 (I. C. Greene). 

 Raises 1 brood. Eggs 3-6, greenish or brownish, marked with 

 blackish. Nest of grass, weeds, mud, etc. in a tree, usually 

 a pine. Eggs laid about the middle of May. Feeds on 

 insects, grain, etc. Beneficial. Notes, loud and harsh 

 squeaks. 



