[Cackling geese in S VT?]

All Canadas...

 

[Large Pennsylvania bird]

I was totally blanking on the reddish eye/reddish billed and not thinking non-natives. Good call on the Chukar Jerry.

[Ib stryder]

Agree with a Flicker species. If it is routinely drumming on the roof or Sat Dish...it is not all that unheard of at this time of year. They are attracting mates and establishing territories and the louder the drumming the better. You can try to cover the favorite rooftop site with some type of sound dampening material and they may be frustrated and find a different site. Another option is putting a plastic decoy Owl up there to frighten it away.  I've been through this a couple times...good luck.

Edit to add: I just saw the OP's second post and seems it may not be your residence... guess ear plugs would work then! 

 

 

[Hawk ID needed]

Cooper's Hawk thirded.

[Pacific Loon?]

Yes a definite Red-throated Loon there.

[Hawk from San Francisco Bay Area]

My take... I like Cooper's from this pic as well. Appears to have long rounded white tipped tail, legs thickness, and head size are good points. And yes the west coast Cooper's can have thicker streaking than typical birds.  @cam... if you have any other pics, please post them.

 

[What is this bird?]

Sun Conure

[Road kill]

This is Barn Owl. Hawks and owls are  common hwy roadkill birds unfortunately... from going after prey on medians and chasing Rock pigeons into underpasses... seen plenty of them on the shoulders but no Barns. 

[Lesser Scaup Male or Femal]

 

15 hours ago, Jefferson Shank said:

100% female Lesser Scaup.

Easy to call immature male Lesser Scaup here... when one knows what they are looking at and not just guessing. Sometimes better not to comment and see the actual ID and learn something.

[Long Island NY- what bird?]

4 minutes ago, Jefferson Shank said:

Which is it? Willow or Alder Flycatcher?

 These 2 are not always that easy to separate without hearing song. Yes there are ways, but even in the hand they sometimes prove difficult with the overlap.

 

[Long Island NY- what bird?]

 Not a peewee...the more I looked at this pic it  a few days back, I was thinking best to leave at Traill's FC as well.

[last 2 nicaragua birds]

1 hour ago, Trevor L. said:

I think the first is a Rock Dove, but wait for more replies on that one. For the second bird, I’d say Striated Heron.

I'd go with Green Heron for the 2nd. Striated is accidental/rare there.  Rock Dove seems right for the first bird.

[ID a spotted bird?]

2 hours ago, Charlie Spencer said:

Thanks.  I have a yard full of them but I've never seen the feathers positioned like this.

They are usually shown when they are roosting.

 

[ID a spotted bird?]

Agree with Carolina Wren here.

[Need help with a duck]

6 minutes ago, Brett H said:

Thank you both for you input. @Jefferson Shank, genius idea of brightening the image! I hadn't thought to do that. I lean towards goldeneye over eider because I can't get past the slope of the forehead and shape of the bill. It's a strange combination of ducks of ducks to be deciding between. But I had already seen both species in the general area today, so I can deal with it. I was sort of hoping someone would suggest shelduck!

Thanks again,

Brett

Problem is it is 100% a Common Eider 

 

[Thrasher Question]

Nice... Congrats.

[Need help with a duck]

The head shape is fine for Eider

 

[Need help with a duck]

5 minutes ago, Jefferson Shank said:

Head shape doesn't fit with Common Eider.

 It most certainly does...

[L.A. and San Diego Trip Help]

2 hours ago, lonestranger said:

Did you forget to post the link birdbrain22? 

LOL... yes I did. Here it is... 

 

[Need help with a duck]

1st winter male Common Eider

 

[Pacific Shorebirds along California]

I'd say 3-5 are the same bird on the same rock. The lighting is playing tricks on you.

I am think they are Glaucous-winged x Western Gulls but the lighting is tough.

 

[Is this a Dunlin??]

2 minutes ago, PV-John said:

Hi, Thanks for your interest. It's been a while since I took the photo, but I'm sure that it was bigger than a killdeer. The bill in the photo seems a bit long for a spotted sandpiper?or Not?

If it was definitely bigger than a Killdeer , I would go with Wandering Tattler.

[Need help with an I.D. of this Swallow.]

On 2/28/2020 at 4:55 AM, Jefferson Shank said:

I don't think anyone was considering any other species... Pretty straightforward with those pictures.

I'm sure the question was for the OP and not you, since they could not ID it from this good of a pic.

[Is this a Dunlin??]

Definitely not a Dunlin.  Tough pic, but  I like Wandering Tattler here. The pic is overexposed so that could add some of the white. Also the size proportiona/posture looks better for Tattler over spotted to me... but that is not always clear to tell from a single pic.

So it is either a Wandering Tattler or a Spotted Sandpiper. @PV-John... do you remember the size of this bird? If you are familiar with Killdeer and Dowitchers, they are Tattler size birds. Western and Semipalmated Sandpipers are roughly the same size as Spotted Sandpipers, so there should have been a noticeable size difference(if you are familiar with those species)

[L.A. and San Diego Trip Help]

Lake Piru Rec Area is about 1 hr north of LA. I found it while doing some research for condor sites prior to my last business trip out there. Unfortunately I did not make it there as my business plans got rerouted to Hawaii.  Here is a link to my info request last year... Jimbob mentions some other LA area locations in his comments. Good luck.