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Re: Boat-tail at Santee NWR-Bluff Unit
- To: carolinabirds@duke.edu
- Subject: Re: Boat-tail at Santee NWR-Bluff Unit
- From: GRACKLER@aol.com
- Date: Sun, 7 Apr 2002 15:52:29 EDT
- Sender: carolinabirds-owner@acpub.duke.edu
Mike-Your sighting of a female Boat-tailed Grackle at Santee NWR is very
interesting. It certainly deserves a follow-up. The grackles may be extending
their breeding range inland, along the large lakes constructed since the
1930's. There is a breeding colony at the South end of Lake Moultrie
(Chicora). Dennis Forsythe and others have seen Boat-tails around the
Orangeburg Sod Farms in late summer, I believe. The females often nest on
small islands of cattails and cut-grass. They usually choose sites that are
patrolled by alligators, probably because the presence of alligators
discourages snakes and mammals from swimming in the area. The female you saw
may be the vanguard of a new colony.
Will Post