[wisb] Re: Dowitcher ID - what do you think?
- From: steven lubahn <stevenlubahn@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: trschultz@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 3 May 2012 23:19:34 -0500
Primary extension on A and B appear to be longer, supporting Short-billed as
well as the more rounded supercilium. Bird C has a straight supercilium and
shorter primary projection. Also, the dark barring on the upper tail appears
wider than the light barring, supporting Long-billed.
I agree with Tom.
I'm tired and could be wrong. Time to go to bed.
Steven Lubahn
Cudahy
Milw Co.
On May 3, 2012, at 10:50 PM, Tom Schultz wrote:
> Dowitcher ID can definitely be a challenge, as the plumages can be quite
> variable -- especially due to differences in age and molt patterns. I have
> examined a fair number of museum skins of these two species, and have found
> that the back patterns and the tail patterns (when they can be seen -- as
> the tail feathers are often concealed) can be pretty distinctive. The
> tertials and uppertail coverts can also be useful. A good guide for the
> species is often the overall blackness of these feathers. The tail on a
> Long-billed appears darker, since the black bars are wider than the white
> bars -- and I have found that this characteristic is generally also true on
> the uppertail coverts.
>
> The back pattern of a Long-billed also appears darker, often with more black
> present, and the rufous areas are more chestnut. On a Short-billed the
> rufous areas on the back are more golden-hued -- making the upperparts
> appear paler. In part due to the darker back pattern on a Long-billed, the
> white feather tips appear more contrasty than they do on a Short-billed.
>
> For these reasons, my opinion is that birds A and B are Short-billed, and
> that C is a Long-billed.
>
> Tom Schultz
> Green Lake Co.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ryan Brady
> Sent: Thursday, May 03, 2012 8:45 PM
> To: wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [wisb] Dowitcher ID - what do you think?
>
>
> Short version...what species are represented by these dowitchers seen in
> Ashland yesterday?
>
> http://www.pbase.com/rbrady/dowitcherid
> http://www.pbase.com/nanich/dowitchers
>
>
> Longer version... Sam Krerowicz found three dowitchers just west of Ashland
> yesterday and then Nick Anich and I headed out to take a look after work. We
> didn't have much time and expected Short-billeds, even though it's slightly
> earlier (by about a week) than we usually see them. We walked up and tried
> turning them into Long-billeds. We thought we might have 1 LB and 2 SBs at
> one point and then convinced ourselves they were all just the expected SBs
> as LBs are quite rare here. We soon left to return to our fatherly duties
> but later last night that ID didn't sit well with us. After some chatting
> Nick and I started to convince ourselves that Bird C had to be a LB. Then we
> were leaning toward all 3 being LBs. Then we were just downright confused.
> And here we are...confused. This is a tough ID and one Nick and I frankly
> are not comfortable with. We butchered the whole process as we could've had
> killer photos of the birds in perfect light but our hurriedness resulted in
> mostly poo
> r digiscopes and heavily cropped dSLR shots, which are in the two galleries
> above.
>
> What do you think? I've labeled the individuals in my gallery for ease of
> referencing Birds A, B, and C during discussion.
>
>
>
> Ryan Brady
> Washburn, Bayfield County, WI
> http://www.pbase.com/rbrady ####################
> You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding
> Network (Wisbirdn).
> To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
> //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
> To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
> //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
> Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn
>
> ####################
> You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding
> Network (Wisbirdn).
> To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
> //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
> To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
> //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
> Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn
>
>
####################
You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding
Network (Wisbirdn).
To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
//www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
//www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn
Other related posts:
