[obol] Re: More Mystery Peeps
- From: Matthew G Hunter <matthewghunter@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 27 Aug 2013 00:00:43 -0700
Max and Madeline,
Both of the photos you have linked below show a juv Western Sandpiper on
the left and two juv Least Sandpipers on the right. Here's how to tell:
At a coarse level, the bird on the left has a paler head, breast and wing
coverts (all the gray feathers that you can see on the wing that is folded
up on the side of the bird). The birds on the right are darker in these
areas, and browner overall rather than grayer.
Looking specifically at the face and upper breast, the bird on the left is
pale/whitish where you might imagine the "jawbone" would be (between the
lower half of the bill and the throat/neck), while the two birds on the
right have some medium graybrown there. Similarly, on the bird to the left
the sides of the upper breast are fairly light, with some light buffy and
some fairly light streaks barely visible in the photo, while the birds on
the right have noticeably brown breasts with noticeably heavier brown
streaking on the sides of the breast.
These are the main features in these photos that distinguish juveniles of
the two species. Recognizing differences in the shape of their body, bill,
and legs takes a longer time to learn. Leg color is not real obvious in
these photos.
Hope that helps,
Matt Hunter
Melrose, OR
***
Here are some more mystery peeps. These were at Ankeny on Saturday.
Madeline is troubling herself way too much about these, and she needs
some peace. My best hunch is that these are Western Sandpipers. We
would appreciate any thoughts.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/1...<http://www.flickr.com/photos/14723735@N08/9605791312/in/photostream/>
http://www.flickr.com/photos/1...<http://www.flickr.com/photos/14723735@N08/9602556765/in/photostream/>
Max Rae
Salem, OR
***
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- » [obol] Re: More Mystery Peeps - Matthew G Hunter
