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Cuando publiqué mi primer libro “¿Que es lo
que vi?” omití de manera deliberada la Zanate,
por considerarlo una especie molesta y poco
atractiva.  Sin embargo, recibí varios reclamos
de parte de turistas que querían saber que eran
esos pajarracos negros escandalosos que hacen
tanto ruido al atardecer.  Se trata del Zanate
Mayor, que puede formar parvadas de miles (la
mas grande conocida se calculaba en ¡medio
millón de pájaros!) que al atardecer regresan a
sus árboles favoritos y pasan por lo menos
media hora pegando de graznidos y silbidos
disonantes.  Son una especie particularmente
adaptada a la presencia humana, y a pesar de
que en muchos lados se les considera una plaga,
su población continúa creciendo y
expandiéndose a la par con la nuestra. Viven
hasta 7 años, alimentándose de todo lo que
encuentren: frutas, granos, insectos, y basura
humana. Las hembras son mas chicas, y de color
pardo.
Zanate Mayor
Great-tailed Grackle
Quiscalus mexicanus
When I published my first book, “What Did I
See?”, I deliberately omitted the Grackle because
I thought it was an unattractive nuisance
species.  However, I received a number of
complaints from tourists that wanted to know
what to call those loud cacophonous black birds
that make such a racket every evening.  They are
Great-tailed Grackles, and they can form flocks
of thousands (the largest recorded was
calculated at half a million birds!) which every
evening return to roost in their favorite tree and
spend at least a half hour squawking and
whistling scandalously.  They are a species that
is particularly well adapted to human presence,
and despite being considered a pest in many
places, their population continues to grow and
expand just as ours does.  They can live up to 7
years feeding on just about anything they find:
fruits, grains, insects, and human garbage.  
Females are smaller and brown.
Photos and text by David Nuñez
Recomendamos
estos libros sobre la
Fauna de México.
(Los nuestros son
bilingues.)
To learn more about
the Wildlife of
Mexico, we
recommend the
following books.