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Boat-tailed Grackles spreading inland in response to habitat change



In this county--Carteret, NC--Boat-tailed Grackles have long occurred
several miles inland from the estuaries in the eastern half of the county
(i.e. east of Morehead City).  This "inland" habitat is low, wet fields.
Boat-taileds also occur inland from the estuaries in other low, wet
counties, like Pamlico and Hyde.

However, in the past, in this county west of Morehead,  where the transition
from estuary to inland habitats is more abrupt, Boat-taileds have been
strictly limited to the immediate estuarine shorelines, being rare just a
couple of hundred yards away from the shorelines.

In the past few years, I have watched as the species has expanded its range
inland at least a couple of miles along the US 70 corridor, associated with
the various types of commercial development--Wal-Mart, McDonald's, etc, etc.
It will be interesting to see how far this continues.

Has a similar phenomenon been observed elsewhere?

                                       John Fussell
                                       Morehead City, NC
                                        jfuss@bmd.clis.com