[TN-Bird] Smith's longspur (3), Short-eared owl(4); Montgomery Cty

From: Daniel Moss <dmoss5@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: TN Bird Listserve <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 18 Feb 2010 00:34:23 -0500 (EST)
17 Feb 2010
Fort Campbell
Montgomery County, TN

This morning around 10:45 I ran across 4 Short-eared owls that were out 
foraging in the daylight - a rare treat. I was attempting to video them when I 
heard a rattling call overhead. This is the first time I've heard the rattling 
call of a longspur and immediately knew that it was a longspur. Three longspurs 
landed close by on the edge of a gravel road in a mixture of short grass, mud, 
and snow. 

The birds had brownish streaked backs, buffy chest and belly, white eye-rings, 
white outer tail feathers, 2 light wing bars, and some streaking on breast & 
flanks. I consulted the Sibley's bird guide and was leaning towards Smith's 
longspurs based upon the overall buffy appearance of the birds. I took some 
photos of the birds and also inadvertently recorded the rattling call on the 
video, which helped seal the identification. 

For any birders with a lot of experience with Smith's I would love to get your 
opinion.

Thanks,
Daniel Moss
Clarksville, TN
=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================

The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with
first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation.
You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds
you report were seen.  The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should
appear in the first paragraph.
_____________________________________________________________
      To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
                    tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
_____________________________________________________________ 
                To unsubscribe, send email to:
                 tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 
            with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
______________________________________________________________
  TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society 
       Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
        endorse the views or opinions expressed
        by the members of this discussion group.
 
         Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
                 wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
                ------------------------------
                Assistant Moderator Andy Jones
                         Cleveland, OH
                -------------------------------
               Assistant Moderator Dave Worley
                          Rosedale, VA
               --------------------------------
               Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan
                        Clarksville, TN
__________________________________________________________
         
          Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
              web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

                          ARCHIVES
 TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/

                       MAP RESOURCES
Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif
Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com

_____________________________________________________________
[TN-Bird] Smith's longspur (3), Short-eared owl(4); Montgomery Cty

Other related posts:
