Quiscalus niger
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The Greater Antillean grackle (Quiscalus niger) is a species of bird in the family Icteridae, the oropendolas, New World orioles, and New World blackbirds. It is found in the Greater Antilles from Cuba to Puerto Rico and in the Cayman Islands southwest of Cuba.
The Irish physician, naturalist and collector Hans Sloane stayed in Jamaica between 1687 and 1689. During his visit, he collected specimens and made notes on the plants and animals. Based on these notes, the ornithologist John Ray published a short description of the Greater Antillean grackle in 1713, using the Latin name Monedula tota nigra but it was not until 1725, more than 35 years after his visit, that Sloane himself published a description of the grackle. He reported that it was common on the road between St. Jago de la Vega (Spanish Town) and Passage-Fort (Portmore).
In 1775 the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon described the Greater Antillean grackle in his Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux. The bird was also illustrated in a hand-colored plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet in the Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle which was produced under the supervision... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ciénaga de Zapata | 🇨🇺 Cuba | |
| 2 | Los Haitises National Park | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | |
| 3 | Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park | 🇯🇲 Jamaica | |
| 4 | Jaragua National Park | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Santo Domingo | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | |
| 2 | Havana | 🇨🇺 Cuba |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Animal - Bird Collection | 🇬🇷 Greece |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Greater Antillean Grackle sighting in Jaragua National Park on a given day, based on 14 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 56th most-seen of the 92 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Greater Antillean Grackle in Jaragua National Park on a given day, against about 10% in May and October–March, the lowest months. June to September have too few records to rate.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Greater Antillean Grackle sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Greater Antillean Grackle sightings, Jaragua National Park ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Ciénaga de Zapata (Cuba, about 50%), Los Haitises National Park (Dominican Republic, about 40%) and Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park (Jamaica, about 20%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Greater Antillean Grackle that you can see in Jaragua National Park (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Stolid Flycatcher (about 40%), Black-crowned Palm-Tanager (about 30%) and Northern Mockingbird (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Greater Antillean Grackle is recorded against all the birds logged in Jaragua National Park (14 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
