Most of the several adult, male, Scarlet Tanagers seen at Monticello Park today
were the bright-red Scarlet color with black wings that one expects to see on
this bird.
One of the adult males, however, while retaining the black wings of an adult
male bird, had a body color that was orange, somewhat like an Oriole.
David Sibley specifically notes this color-variant on page 463 of the first
edition of his bird guide.
I have seen orange-variant Scarlet tanagers at Monticello Park before, in the
25 years that I've been birding there. I also had one at the birdbath in my
yard about 8 or 10 years ago.
The bird was seen, and it's color noted, by a number of people in the park.
I was able to get a very good photograph of the bird when it was down low on
one of the saplings by the creek. I shared this photograph, on my camera, with
several other people in the park.
I have never been able to determine, with any degree of certainty, exactly
what causes this orange-variant color on an-otherwise red bird. It is
apparently either a genetic aberration, or is caused by the food that the bird
eats, or some combination thereof.
Whatever the cause, it's a strikingly interesting bird to see.
You just never know what you might see at Monticello park this time of year.
Donald Sweig
Falls Church, Virginia
Sent from my iPad
