Bird Id Part 3

[Lava Lamp]

Not one I see much. This and the prior two birds were within about 100 feet of one another.

[Lava Lamp]

Getting in my car when this guy flew by and landed about 50 feet away.

[dadas115]

Nice osprey, sapsucker and woodpeckers. I love it when they fly right up to you though it doesn't seem to happen nearly frequently enough!

Greg

[paulnj]

That redbellied image is great! I also like the sapsucker image due to it's rarity in my area and yours!

[dadas115]

Here's a bird for you to ID. This was a real sneaky little fellow who was moving only a few feet in front of me for who knows how long before I noticed him peaking his head out of the grass.

Greg

[paulnj]

It look quite clapper rail to me, but something about it seems odd. I will be the first to admit that clapper/ king is not easy for me due to limited run ins with them.

I went to my Sibley just now and , though I want to say clapper, I think it may be a hybrid? The facial plumage seems to be a mix of both species to me atleast.

Disclaimer : I have never seen the gulf coast subspecies, but have seen the duller eastern variety.

[dadas115]

My guess on this one is also clapper rail. It was certainly found in the proper environment along the channel leading into Galveston Bay from the Gulf of Mexico. It also looks pretty typical of what I have come to expect from clappers around here though I wouldn’t be surprised at all if there were lots of hybrids running around. I did get to hear the call and for whatever reason I never hear the ticking call from the local birds, it is always the more melodic descending call that is much more prolonged than what I have heard on any recording. For what its worth, I have never heard the ticking from the local King rails either.

Greg

[paulnj]

It does look mostly clapper and a few marks or plumage differences doesn't nessarially make it a hybrid. Do you by any chance know Will Roundtree(shoots Brazos Bend alot), if so , he may be able to tell us for sure ;)

[dadas115]

Yes, Will is a friend of mine. I can tell you that I have taken photos very similar to this ones and gotten positive ID’s from plenty of expert birders (Charlie Brower for example) in the area though the two species are known to frequently hybridize in this area. I don’t think this one is a hybrid, or if it is, it was several generations ago. I mostly posted this to give you a bit more of a challenge than the downies and osprey were.

Greg

[paulnj]

Thanks for making me think, I sure do need to think about things besides my bathroom remodel that has been giving me a headache for 3 weeks(nearly done with deside/ buy part thank god)

I know of Will from birdpix(yahoo group) , his images and knowledge are GREAT!

[Lava Lamp]

I've posted females to these ID threads, but I don't remember seeing a male. How's the contrast here? I got a new monitor about a month ago and have been having trouble getting it set right.

[Lava Lamp]

Obiviouslyposted several of these, but this one was from about 10 feet away today...

[paulnj]

Great images here LL, but I must say the Woody is just a bit too contrasty for my taste(though it's not too contrasty for most people I'd think)

[dadas115]

Great shot Lava, is this a wild bird? I have yet to get a good shot of a made wood duck yet.

Greg

[Lava Lamp]

Have we had one of these? I'm thinking no.

[dadas115]

Nice one Lava, was this from the summer?

Greg

[Lava Lamp]

Nice one Lava, was this from the summer?

Greg

Thanks, I shot the photo yesterday.

[Lava Lamp]

Here's a juvenile ot go with it...

[paulnj]

NOW that is a young night-heron!!!

[Knight]

WoW great captures Weather has me kinda stuck in Chikadee mode here, but they are fun to watch lol

[dadas115]

Here is a brain teaser for anyone who wants to try their hand at bird ID. This bird was found just outside of Houston, TX last week. Can anyone guess what it is?

http://www.pbase.com/dadas115/image/54909677

Click on original to see the full-size picture

Here is another shot of the same bird

http://www.pbase.com/dadas115/image/54909678

Greg

[paulnj]

The myiarchus genus birds are VERY HARD , but I think it's a brown-crested due to the streak behind the eye, the thick beak and the even fade from yellow in the belly to grey in the breast.

If not, it must be the more common ash throated ;)

I wouldn't put a cent on that ID though, having only seen one ash-throated 100 feet away in my 10x50 leicas and never seeing a brown crested.

[Lava Lamp]

New one for me -- saw him in the scrub above a sand dune at the beach. Thought it was a mourning dove, but it's not.

[Lava Lamp]

What kind of gull is it?

[Lava Lamp]

What kind of tern?