Tamaulipas Crow Identification

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Tamaulipas Crow Photos and Videos

A small, glossy crow with a purplish sheen to the upperparts.

Largely restricted to northeastern Mexico, but occurs on occasion in southern Texas, most famously at the Brownsville landfill.

Adult

A small crow with a glossy purplish sheen and a distinctive froglike call.

Calling birds give a low-pitched, nasal croaking sound, often repeated several times.

A social species, often seen foraging in pairs or small groups.

Forages on food scraps, carrion, insects, seeds and berries, and more.

See more images of this species in Macaulay Library

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Great-tailed Grackle

Chihuahuan Raven

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Identification

Small glossy crow, common in northeast Mexico. Occurs in towns, villages, rubbish dumps, farmland, and semiopen areas with hedges and taller trees. Social and usually in flocks, at times of hundreds. Most likely to be confused with male Great-tailed Grackle, which has pale eyes and longer and keel-shaped tail (shed in late-summer molt). Chihuahuan Raven much larger, with much heavier bill and different voice. Calls of Tamaulipas Crow are low, froglike croaks.