If you’re tyring to look out for purple colored birds in Alabama, you’ve come to the right place. In this article I’ll be going over 5 unique purple birds in Alabama you can look out for if you plan to go on a little birdwatching expedition.

• Purple Martin
• Common Grackle 
• Purple Finch 
• American Purple Gallinule 
• Rock Pigeon

5 Purple Birds In Alabama

1. Purple Martin (Progne Subis)

• Size: 19 – 20cm
• Weight: 45 – 60 grams
• Wingspan: 39 – 41cm

You can find purple martins in Alabama when they happen breed. This season begins around late April – May and tends to end around late August – September. 

Purple Martins are recognised by their almost entirely purple plumage with the wings and lower half of their body purple, with the remainder a darker blue color. Females on the other hand are mostly white and gray with hints of blue on their plumage.

As for where these birds live, it tends to be around open locations that are at least 40 ft. from trees or building so, you’ll often see them perching on utility wires and houses throughout their local neighbourhood.

Purple Martins consume mostly flying insects like house flies, crane flies, beetles, and even dragonflies. Dragonflies in particular are a very important part of their diet.

These avians have been known to live for 13 years but, the average for most probably wouldn’t surpass 6 – 7 years.

2. Common Grackle (Quiscalus Quiscula)

• Size: 28 – 34cm
• Weight: 74 – 142 grams
• Wingspan: 36 – 46cm

Common grackles can be found in Alabama year round as it is among their many permenants residencies within North America. 

The common grackle is recognised by their purple head, brown mixed with hints of purple on their wings and back, blue wing tail and chest. Females are mostly a duller darker brown color with small inklings of purple on their body.

These birds tend to spend the majority of their time within wet, open woodlands, marshes as well as in suburbs, parks, and agricultural fields. 

As for the type of food a common grackle eats, it includes eating many forms of crops like corn as well as nearly anything else that catches their eyes such as food foraged from garbage.

The average lifespan for these birds is around 17 years whilst some are able to live till the age of 22.

3. Purple Finch (Haemorhous Purpureus)

• Size: 15 – 16cm
• Weight: 24 – 26 grams
• Wingspan: 25 – 26cm

You can find these finches in Alabama in their non-breeding months. This will encompass fall and winter time for the most part. 

Purple finches are recognised by their pink plumage with hints of purple throughout, their mohawk like head feathers and gray beak. Females on the other hand are mostly brown.

These finches can be found in coniferous and mixed woods, both in forest interior and along edges. They also tend to breed near oak trees and streamsides. 

Purple finches tend to eat a variety foods from insects, small fruits, berries and seeds, with seeds being their go to food source.

The average lifespan for these birds is around 3 – 4 years, though many are also able to live till 6 or 7 years of age.

4. American Purple Gallinule (Porphyrio Martinicus)

• Size: 33 – 37cm
• Weight: 203 – 291 grams
• Wingspan: 55 – 56cm

American purple gallinules can be found in Southern Alabama when breeding. 

Purple gallinules are recognised by their purple neck and chest, their green wings, their dirty yellow colored back, yellow legs and striking red beak. Females on the other hand are a dull brown color.

These purple birds tend to inhabit mostly freshwater marshes that hold water year-round and have sedges, grasses or rushes. Purple gallinules especially prefer areas with dense stands of emergent floating vegetation like the American lotus, water shield, spatterdock, pickerel weed, arrowhead, water pennywort, etc.

As for what their diet consists of, it includes feeding on spiders, mollusks, beetles, bees, worms, snails, dragonflies, leeches, moth larvae as well as frogs, small fish, eggs and nestlings of other birds.

Purple gallinules are known to live for around 22 years in most cases but, some have lived upwards of 25 years old.

5. Rock Pigeon (Columba Livia)

• Size: 30 – 36cm
• Weight: 265 – 380 grams
• Wingspan: 50 – 67cm

These pigeons can be found in Alabama throughout the year so you shouldn’t have too much of an issue finding these birds flying around your local region. 

Rock pigeons are mostly gray with elements of black on their wings and green plus purple hue across their neck. Females are generally smaller in size and also have a flatter head unlike the males who tend to have a more round head shape.

These pigeons spend the majority of their time around urban parks and neighbourhoods, around farms, under highway, railroad bridges as well as near tall rocky cliffs.

In regards to the food rock pigeons eat, they include a variety of seeds, bread crumbs, seed grasses, worms among other insects, berries and acorns.

Rock pigeons tend to live for 6 years in the wild when averaged out.