39 



NAME- 



IS oat-Tailed Grackle A.O.U.NO. -513 

 (Cassidix mexicanus) ** 



DATE- MAY 7, 193^ 



INCUBATION- 



1/5 



1 .25 x 0.88 1 .22 x 0.91 

 SIZES ~ 1.22 x 0.90 1.24 x 0.91 



SITUATION - Although this species is much 

 more common near the coast, a small group of 

 these birds were found nesting at various 

 heights in rather tall pines and locusts, 

 some of which had significant honeysuckle 

 and other vines growing up into the trees. 



I had watched these birds a 

 few days before taking these eggs and at 

 first I thought they were Purple Grackles, 

 but their larger size and larger eggs, with 

 the longer and typical tail made their iden- 

 tity certain. 



This nest was almost 40* up in 

 a Virginia Pine and was placed on the crotch 

 of a 2§ w limb about 2' from the trunk of the 

 tree. The nest was bulky and loosely made of 

 various fairly heavy grasses and weeds wound 

 about several smaller supporting limbs. It 

 was lined with finer grasses and weed stems 

 with small amounts of mud intermixed. There 

 were four rather long, oval bluish -gray eggs, 

 slightly glossy; they had prominent spots, 

 scrawl and splotches of browns, darker gray 

 and pale lavender. This description fit three 

 of the eggs, but the fourth had more brown 

 tones than the others and really looked def- 

 initely different. The nest was at least 9" 

 in its greatest overall diameter, 3 M in its 

 inside depth, 5" inside diameter and at least 

 4" high. Near V.E.S., Lynchburg, Va. 1 

 (Quiscalus major) A.O.U. Checklist 1983 



