[birding] E.E. Wilson bunting + late-summer birds

[Joel Geier]

Hi Rich & Nanette & All,

Glad that you were able to re-find the bird and add more details to my
sketchy description, plus get some photos. I missed the blue on the
belly (or forgot it) but from everything I've been looking at on the web
while trying to puzzle this one out, that does point to Indigo. I'll
look forward to seeing the photos, but right now everything is sounding
pretty good for plain old Indigo with nothing really pointing to a
hybrid.

I don't have any real experience with this problem myself, since all of
the Indigo Buntings that I've ever seen or at least paid attention to
back in Minnesota were in breeding plumage, not this wacky plumage which
according to the web is called "presupplemental molt" or something like
that -- they start molting on the breeding grounds, then stop to
migrate, then molt some more on the wintering grounds.

I was out there this afternoon and didn't find the bunting (my e-mail
was down so didn't see this message until I got back). The shorebird
situation was about the same as yesterday, but even fewer. 

I did come across a hatch-year male BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK calling a bit
farther north in the wildlife area, which surprised me because I thought
all of them were gone. I think the HY males are supposed to be the last
to go. 

Also in the category of summer birds that will soon be gone: I saw a
couple of WESTERN WOOD-PEWEES, and heard SWAINSON'S THRUSHES giving soft
calls from just about every patch of trees. I had one Swainson's Thrush
come rifling into a willow thicket right next to me, when I was trying
to pish up what turned out to be five EVENING GROSBEAKS in the far NE
corner of the wildlife area. A few WILSON'S WARBLERS and ORANGE-CROWNED
WARBLERS. Back at the Angling Pond, a couple of GREEN HERONS were
rattling and spreading their wings to ward off a NORTHERN HARRIER that
was flying too close.

Happy birding,
Joel

On Tue, 2009-09-08 at 11:02 -0700, rich armstrong wrote:
> 1. nanette & i went out to e e wilson at 930 and after about 20 minutes of 
> goldfinches and barn swallows, the BUNTING showed up right where joel sent 
> us. it actually posed reasonably for us about 50 feet into the private area 
> north of the fence. it then flew down behind a bush in the cattails.
> 2. i did take my scope, and nanette did take her camera, and she did get a 
> bunch of pictures that hopefully will show something. we will figure out how 
> to get them to someone.
> 3. definitely a splotchy bird. now 1st i must point out that we are not 
> close to the skill level of joel geier, so take these comments for what they 
> are worth - not a lot.
>     a. the chest was mostly brown but had a belly area that was quite blue - 
> i don't think lazuli would have blue on the belly in any plumage?
>     b. we saw no wing bars.
>     c. the browns of the throat and chest and back were darker brown which i 
> think leans more to indigo
> 4. i have no clue what a hybrid would look like.
> 5. so we think it is not a lazuli, but we hope the pictures will be 
> definitive to the experts. nanette has to work at school but hopefully she 
> will get them loaded up late afternoon.
> Rich Armstrong
> 541-753-1978
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Joel Geier" <joel.geier at peak.org>
> To: "MidValley Birds" <list at midvalleybirding.org>; "Oregon Birders OnLine"
> <obol at oregonbirdwatch.org>
> Sent: Monday, September 07, 2009 9:04 PM
> Subject: [birding] E.E. Wilson bunting
> 
> 
> > Hi folks,
> >
> > Sorry for the multiple postings while my multiple scattered trains of
> > thought gradually converge on an ID here, but ...
> >
> > First, it seems that the blue patches on this bird make it an
> > after-hatch-year male.
> >
> > After looking through all of the online images that I could find based
> > on searches on various combinations of the words "indigo lazuli bunting
> > molting hybrid" etc., it seems that there ought to be at least some
> > visible trace of a pale wingbar or two, on an after-hatch-year, hybrid
> > Indigo x Lazuli Bunting.
> >
> > Or is it just that hybrids/backcrosses are only recognized when there is
> > some trace of wing bars? Seems like this discussion comes up a lot when
> > eastern birders are hoping for a Lazuli Bunting, so maybe there is some
> > circumstantial selection toward birds that show wing bars.
> >
> > This one was such a motley-looking bird, it was hard even to describe
> > and the yellowjacket feasting on my foot didn't help. It would be nice
> > if someone could get a photograph tomorrow for better diagnosis. I might
> > give it a try but the equipment I have at hand is not really up to the
> > purpose.
> >
> > The location again is straight north of E.E. Wilson HQ, after you cross
> > the canal, then turn right just before the fence on the south side of
> > the area that's closed to the public. Walk out about 200 ft to where
> > this fence crosses a ditch with cattails, then look north.
> >
> > Happy birding,
> > Joel
> >
> > P.S. We were back out there to pick plums this evening but didn't see
> > the bunting. We did hear about 30 or so SWAINSON'S THRUSHES calling from
> > just about everywhere, as it got close to dusk.
> >
> > P.P.S. For Sandy -- sorry, after sweeping up all of those Blackpoll &
> > Magnolia Warblers I neglected to take a photo, before mailing the whole
> > box in to the OBRC. Hope it gets there soon, I hear the weather is
> > getting warm again. ;)
> >
> > --
> > Joel Geier
> > Camp Adair area north of Corvallis
> >
> >
> >
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> > list at midvalleybirding.org
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> 
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