Interesting article linked below...
http://www.earthtouchnews.com/natural-world/animal-behaviour/in-the-world-of-ruffs-a-male-bird-thats-sneaky-and-well-endowed
Tom Becker
http://www.flickr.com/groups/iasphotos/
http://www.flickr.com/groups/kentucky_ornithological_society/
On May 27, 2015, at 9:25 AM, <brainard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
<brainard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
In attempting to decide whether the Calidris pugnax seen at McElroy Lake on May
17th was a male (=Ruff) or female (= Reeve), I received the info copied below
from shorebird expert, Kevin Karlson. His comments refer to the bird as it
appears in photos taken by Ben and Mary Yandell that are posted on the KOS
Flickr page. Very interesting stuff.
bpb, Louisville
- - - - - - - - - -
Brainard, yes, this is a tough one to judge from photos only, and the standing
bird next to the Dunlin looks way too big for a Reeve, but the flying shots
look way too small for a Ruff compared to the nearby Dunlin and Lesser
Yellowlegs. I cannot make out the extent of the dark markings on the underside
of the standing bird, but they look pretty substantial, which is much better
for Ruff than Reeve. I wonder if this bird is one of the faeders, which are
small males that resemble females, and who go to the breeding grounds late and
try to mate with the overflow of females. A few years ago, Colorado had a
similar bird that was determined to be a faeder, and this bird was small like a
large Reeve, but had the markings of a Ruff. Most faeders have the colorful
feathers underneath the female-like feathers, and only show them when
displaying. I agree that the flight shots of the bird are too small to be a
Ruff, so I will say that it is either a Reeve or a faeder. Richard Chandler,
the excellent British ornithologist and shorebird expert, wrote a nice piece
for us on Frontiers about faeders, and suggested that the Colorado bird was one
of these. I agreed with him, and disagreed with the other comments on that bird
due to the relatively small head and oddly shaped body that Ruffs show compared
to the evenly proportioned body and head of a Reeve. Kevin
<Reeve, 5-19-05, Reeds Beach NJ.jpg>
