What seem like flocks of crackles to send on my lawn sometimes, looking for the sunflower seeds other birds have dropped from elevated feeders. They have a gorgeous iridescent shine when the sun is out, but I get annoyed when they stayed too long, because doves, thrashers and other ground feeders seem intimidated by them. Some birdwatchers describe grackles as bullies, but I've never seen them actually attack other birds. I think their size and assertiveness means that when they're around, other birds eat somewhere else.

But for the longest time, I wondered what that pretty little brown bird was. It took me forever to realize it was a female grackle!