[TN-Bird] Re: Our most misidentified bird?
- From: Daniel Estabrooks <hyla514@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: tn-bird <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2012 13:29:57 -0700 (PDT)
I think the biggest problem with phoebes is that field guides simply don't do
an adequate job of showing their plumage variation. The National Geographic
guide, for example, devotes a great deal of space to geographic variation in
Horned Larks and Song Sparrows but gives very little treatment to the Eastern
Phoebe, which I think can be just as confusing as those other two. I still
remember being thoroughly confused by my first Eastern Phoebe when I moved east
from New Mexico. It had a great deal of yellow on the flanks, and I just
couldn't find anything like it in any of my guides.
I personally am somewhat skeptical of all the Rusty Blackbirds that get
reported on eBird from Murfree Spring Wetland. I have yet to see one there, and
I'm not sure if other people are misidentifying short-tailed grackles or if I'm
just overlooking genuine Rusties by not looking closely at individual birds
within grackle flocks.
Daniel
________________________________
From: Bill Pulliam <littlezz@xxxxxxxxx>
To: Tn bird <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, March 21, 2012 12:09 PM
Subject: [TN-Bird] Our most misidentified bird?
I know there are many novice and aspiring birders who lurk on this list,
learning as they go. Hello! In recent months, judging from eBird submissions,
I have noticed what appears to be the species most misidentified by the new
birders in Tennessee this time of year:
Eastern Phoebe
For such a plain bird, the Eastern Phoebe has a surprisingly variable
appearance. It can look black-and-white like an Eastern Kingbird,
yellow-bellied like a Great Crested Flycatcher, wingbarred and tail-wagging
like an Acadian or other Empidonax, or plain gray and wingbarred like a Pewee.
Reports of all these other species have come in recently that all appear to be
misidentified Phoebes. All of these other species are MUCH less likely this
time of year, though some will be arriving pretty soon. In winter and early
spring, when you see any flycatcher anywhere in Tennessee, the big question has
got to be "why is this not an Eastern Phoebe?" Study the variations in this
common bird, and then unless you can come up with an iron-clad reason why not,
the overwhelming odds are that it IS a Phoebe!
Bill Pulliam
Hohenwald TN
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