Slender-billed grackle

Quiscalus palustris

The slender-billed grackle (Quiscalus palustris) is an extinct species of grackle in the Icteridae (New World blackbirds) family of birds.

Family: Icteridae Order: passerines Conservation: Extinct

About the Slender-billed grackle

The slender-billed grackle (Quiscalus palustris) is an extinct species of grackle in the Icteridae (New World blackbirds) family of birds. The species was closely related to the western clade of the great-tailed grackle, from which it diverged quite recently, around 1.2 million years ago. It weighed 2.5 oz to 5 oz. The slender-billed grackle was endemic to central Mexico, especially in the Valley of Mexico and the Toluca Valley. Early observations recorded by Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún in the 16th-century manuscript General History of the Things of New Spain indicate that the species was found in cultivated areas and towns. Later records indicated that it might be a marsh specialist. The species became extinct around the turn of the 20th century.

Fun Facts About Slender-billed grackle

The species was closely related to the western clade of the great-tailed grackle, from which it diverged quite recently, around 1.2 million years ago.
The species became extinct around the turn of the 20th century.
The slender-billed grackle was endemic to central Mexico, especially in the Valley of Mexico and the Toluca Valley.
The slender-billed grackle (Quiscalus palustris) is an extinct species of grackle in the Icteridae (New World blackbirds) family of birds.
Early observations recorded by Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún in the 16th-century manuscript General History of the Things of New Spain indicate that the species was found in cultivated areas and towns.

Conservation Status

The Slender-billed grackle is classified as Extinct on the IUCN Red List.

View on IUCN Red List →

Taxonomy & Classification

Order	passerines
Family	Icteridae
Genus	Quiscalus
Species	Quiscalus palustris

Range & Habitat