geneise

Photos and answers are supplied by Tony Leukering, a freelance ornithologist based in the Tampa Bay area, with strong interests in bird migration, distribution, and identification. He has [...]

Yet another dark, flying bird to test our birding mettle. This bird’s longer bill should steer us away from the various raptorial orders, however. In fact, the combination of our quiz bird’s mostly black body plumage, an apparent white patch on the relatively short wing, the long tail, and extensive white on the head dramatically reduces the ABA-Area identification options.

Hopefully, we all agree that this month’s quiz bird is a raptor; certainly, the strongly hooked beak provides a datum supporting that initial ID. Raptors cause birders all kinds of fits as far as identification, for a wide variety of reasons. Their relative rarity means that most birders see relatively few individuals of most species in any given year, stretching the learning curve out over time.

Here’s an angle on a species that many of us seen frequently, but possibly not often like this. The features that grab my eye, include the white belly, the orange throat, and the white wing stripe. “What? White wing stripe? What is that?”

While many of us would get lost in the rufous aspect to the primaries of this month’s quiz bird, perhaps also the white in the secondaries, the initial critical aspect of this bird’s identification lies in noting its feet.

Ah, back to a flying bird; much better than those pesky facing-away sparrows. The short, wide, and fairly flat bill and longish, narrow wings do a pretty good at ruling virtually all ABA-Area bird families out, except for the Anatidae. I am certain that many of us do not particularly care for the viewing angle on this beastie.