The Greater Antillean grackle (Quiscalus niger) is a grackle found throughout the Greater Antilles, as well as smaller nearby islands. Like all Quiscalus grackles, it is a rather large, gregarious bird.[2] It lives largely in heavily settled areas.
The Irish physician, naturalist and collector Hans Sloane stayed in Jamaica between 1687 and 1689. During his visit, he collected specimens and made notes on the plants and animals.[4] Based on these notes, the ornithologist John Ray published a short description of the Greater Antillean grackle in 1713, using the Latin name Monedula tota nigra[5] but it was not until 1725, more than 35 years after his visit, that Sloane himself published a description of the grackle. He reported that it was common on the road between St. Jago de la Vega (Spanish Town) and Passage-Fort (Portmore).[6]
The Greater Antillean grackle is now one of seven species placed in the genusQuiscalus (six extant and one extinct), that was introduced by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1816.[11][12] The genus name is from the specific name Gracula quiscula coined by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus for the common grackle; the specific niger is Latin for "black".[13][14]
There are seven subspecies, each restricted to one island or island group.[12] They differ in body size, bill size, and colour tone.
Q. n. niger – (Boddaert, 1783): the nominate subspecies, found on Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic)
Q. n. crassirostris – Swainson, 1838: found in Jamaica
Q. n. brachypterus – Cassin, 1867: found in Puerto Rico
Description
The 27 cm (11 in)-long male is glossy black with a large rudder-like tail; the 24 cm (9.4 in)-long female has a smaller tail and is similar in color, but less glossy than the male. The eye is yellow and is the only non-black body part.
The Greater Antillean grackle is a generalist eater; it eats fruits, bread, plant matter, and both small vertebrates and invertebrates alike.