You only need to visit Rey at dusk to see and hear the Grackle. The male (40cm/16in) is black but has a purple sheen to its feathers and the smaller female (33cm/13in) brown but both are defined by their long tail. They are very gregarious and strut when on the ground. The female resembles the Clay thrush but walks as opposed to hops. The Grackle likes to glide and use its tail as a rudder. The Grackle is to the southern States and central America as the Starling is to Europe. They are everywhere, large in number and tend to bully other birds. The eat fruit, small vertebrates and carrion.