Mush

After some digging, I found this online: https://www.beautyofbirds.com/anhingas.html " At the end of the first year, their plumage rapidly turns tatty brown (referred to as "brown phase." Their full adult plumage grows in after a comprehensive prenuptial molt when they are about two years old and before their first breeding season (after their second or third winter)." Thus, this must be a "brown phase" anhinga. However, I could not find many references to this term, but it does make sense. Also water turkey.... I am guessing because they spread their wings like a turkey spreads its fail feathers? I don't understand the nickname haha.

Hello, Yesterday I saw this Anhinga in central Florida, but it looked extremely pale for an anhinga. Will any expert weigh in on whether this is partial leucism or just a weird juvenile plumage that I don't see often. Thanks!

Hello! Currently in central Florida, swallows are passing through in great numbers and swallows are everywhere. Mostly barns, but the occasional martin, cliff, or bank passes through. However, I saw a flock of these swallows extremely high in the sky (I was scoping some raptors and noticed them mixed with the kettle). They appear to be northern rough winged swallows, due to the paler throat, browner back, and more squared tail than a barn swallow. Thoughts? =

Hey! Simple one today. Westerns, Dunlins, and Semipalmated sandpipers in nonbreeding plumage...... I can never seem to get the three straight. I know semipalamated has the shortest beak, followed by westerm, then dunlin has the longest beak. However, I am torn between western and dunlin in this image. Anyone care to help and give some good tips for IDing the three species? Thanks! (This bird was seen in western Florida. It is shorebird migration currently here, lots of cool stuff).

Hello, Today I was kayaking on a lake in central Florida and after sunset these 4 night herons flew over the lake. They definitely did not sound like black-crowned night herons, and their necks appear to be a bit thinner. Sorry for the bad photos, they were taken 30 min after sunset. What do you guys think?

Hello, Today in central Florida I saw this duck very far out on a big lake. It looked way too big to be a mallard, and the body shape is a big off too. I know the photo is very low quality due to the distance, but do you guys think it is a mallard x Muscovy duck hybrid? Thanks!

Hello, I am going through some old photos from Montana taken last Summer, and I've been trying to ID all the birds I saw. As a Floridian, I am not as familiar with some of these. Let me know if I am correct! 1.Cassin's Finch Female 2.Clay-Colored Sparrow 3.Slate-Colored Fox Sparrow 4.Ruby-Crowned Kinglet? 5.Golden-Crowned Kinglet? 6.Hammond's Flycatcher or Least Flycatcher. 7.Willow Flycatcher 8.Willow Flycatcher 7.Hammond's Flycatcher? 8.Western-Wood Peewee 9.9. This is the most difficult one in my opinion. I am pretty sure it is a juvenile Yellow-Rumped (Audubon's) Warbler. Note the yellow throat, thinner beak, and insectivorous diet. Thank you for the help! Those flycatchers were tricky...

Sorry for the compressed audio. This audio was actually clipped from a much better recording focusing on a white-eyed vireo, I just noticed this song in the background when listening to the rest of the recording, so I digitally enhanced it. Thanks though, I was 75% sure this was a yellowthroat, as I saw a beautiful male when kayaking. Unrelated but I just realized today is my first anniversary since joining this site!

Hello, When kayaking in central Florida, I noticed this red-tailed hawk with an extra pale belly. I was wondering what subspecies it was. My guess is borealis, since the head is too dark to be Krider's.

Hello, Simple question. I heard this bird singing in central Florida this weekend. It was heard in when kayaking in a creek where I have seen many common yellowthroats before. I tend to get some of the Warbler songs mixed up, so I just wanted to make sure this is a common yellowthroat. Common Yellowthroat.mp3

Hello, Recently I saw this Yellow-Rumped Warbler in Central Florida. However, I am confused on which subspecies it is. The striking yellow dot on top, combined with a grayish back, and a tiny hint of yellow on the throat makes me think its a Myrtle x Audubon's? What do you guys think?

Greetings, I have a difficult one today. For new year's I traveled to Miami and found a lot of parrots. However, Psittacara parrots tend to look really similar... The eBird reviewer counted all of these as correct, but I just wanted to verify If I got these species correct. Starting with easiest to most difficult. 1. Red Masked Parakeet: The almost completely covers the face. 2. White-Eyed Parakeet: Note the distinct eyerings, and complete lack of red on face. You cannot see it here, but they had a red+yellow mark under the wing. 3. Mitred Parakeet: The most common Psittacara. Red extends below eye, but is not as extensive as the red masked parakeet. Also note red under the wing. 4. Green Parakeet: Note lack of eyering. This individual looks just like the one on the eBird species profile: https://ebird.org/species/grnpar 5. Scarlet Fronted Parakeet (Bird on Right): Note large size compared to nearby parrot. Red is restricted to forecrown, and seems to lack red under the wing. 6. Crimson Fronted Parakeet (Bird on left): Note smaller size than nearby Scarlet-Fronted(?) Parakeet. Red is restricted to forecrown. ------------ Those were the ones I was pretty sure of, now here are some unknowns: Unknown 1: Crimson Fronted Parakeet? Note the red doesn't reach the eye, and there is a hint of yellow under the wing. Unknown 2: Mitred Parakeet? Unknown 3: Scarlet-Fronted Parakeet? There seems to be no red under the wing, and red doesn't go below eye. ------- Thanks for the help everyone! These parakeets are super tricky! I am anxious to see if I got the identifications correct or not.

Hello, a.) Today when at Ponce Inlet Florida, I saw this gull flyover (see the first 2 pictures). Recently, a first winter heerman's gull has been seen around these parts, and I was wondering if this was him. He was flying with 2 ring billed gulls and was around a similar size, but looked way darker, without any streaking. Here is a picture of someone's past eBird checklist which contains the bird for comparison. https://ebird.org/checklist/S76906583 b.) This duck was mixed with a flock of black scoters moving south (See last 2 photos). I'm pretty sure its a female lesser scaup, but I just wanted to see if I was correct. Sorry for the bad quality photos! Very curious about the gull

Hello, Today I saw this extra pale looking red-tailed hawk in Central Florida. Is it a Krider's? The thing that is throwing me off is the belly-band, which kirder's usually lack. It kind of looks like a juvenile borealis too. Sorry for quality, it was taking before sunrise.

Hello, I saw this Warbler at Cape Canaveral, Florida. At first I thought this was a plain-old yellow-throated Warbler, but someone said it may be the rare subspecies, Setophaga dominica albilora. What do you guys think? The lores look pretty white to me (but I see a faint faint bit of yellow near the beak), but I not sure I want to submit it to eBird and iNaturalist before I run it through here. Thanks!