I remember when I wanted more from birdwatching. I’d been feeding birds for years, and I loved their beauty; but I wanted to know more about the behaviors I observed. What did it mean when they quivered their wings, or ruffled their feathers, or raised their bills skyward? That’s when I discovered all three volumes of A Guide to Bird Behavior by Donald Stokes. A wonderful, new world opened up before my eyes; and I became a lifelong bird behavior watcher!
Common grackles provide great opportunities for behavior watching. At my feeders today, this male competed with other males for the attention of a nearby female by performing this “ruff-out” display during which he ruffled his feathers, fanned his tail, rose up on his legs, and let out a squeaky call. Breeding season is underway!
And I thought he might be ruffling his feathers at you. How wonderful for you to look into his behaviour and share that info with us. :) Nice shot too.
Love the shot and all the colors on his feathers even though these guys are pests (Starling, right?). We call them the soccer fans of the bird community--always loud, obnoxious and rowdy.
