mfoster.vt

I got this pic today and I'm pretty sure it is an unusual Redstart. It was singing the Redstart song, but had me confused looking at it in the field. I would think it is a male since it was singing and really doesn't have the coloration of a female. My guess is it is just a wierdo. Any other thoughts?

So I have also put this to some local experts and our eBird reviewers for the county. One suggestion that seems to fit well is female hooded warbler. They have a more olive color to the back, no wing bars, black beak and a yellow cheek. Habitat is right as well, as they like the understory which is where I saw this. What do you all think about that as an ID?

Birdbrain, I am thinking you are right. It all looked kind of right for a Prothonatary, yet it did not have the bright yellow I see in pictures. On top of that I have some great photos of a Blue-Winged warbler (male) that I saw today and I heard another in a location near where I saw this bird. I'd love to make it a Prothonatary, but it looks better for female blue winged to me. Thanks.

OK, now you have me going. I know there was a Prothonatary Warbler in far eastern VT that I did not go to see last year. I attached a photo of the bird unedited. I usually do not do this as I shoot in RAW specifically so I can get the best colors and minimize noise. This is a bit washed out because of no processing. I got another pic, but it is exactly the same.

;Got this pic today of a bird that had been on the ground by a small rivulet, not in the canopy. This was in a mature hardwood forest. I got no song and no look at the bird from the side. Looks like maybe a pine warbler, but it may be impossible to ID. TIA g

Thanks to you both. I know there is a spectrum, but these 3 stood out. There were several others that seemed probable, but not definitive enough to call. 'Thanks.

Got these pics today. I was mostly scoping and counting a large flock of geese (over 1200) and spotted several candidates for Cackling geese while doing so. I then shot pics of the whole flock. They were on a distant shore, so these pics are highly cropped. I looked through about 2 dozen pics I had of them. There were multiple geese that I would say are candidates for hybrids, but these seemed to stand out as probably Cackling. Just seeing what folks here think. The 2 on the left in this photo The one in the center foreground here.

Thanks Jefferson Shank

Thanks everyone. I saw a bunch of Lesser Black Gulls today with varying plumages and have a better handle on them. I am not on the coast, so all seabirds provide challenges to me.

I have been hoping to see some Marbled Godwit here at Pea Island, NC but have come up blank, till today. I think. I took a couple of pics of these far off birds just to see if I could ID them, and I think that they are the Godwits. Only wish I could have been closer for the photos. Just want to confirm my ID. Second pic is cropped from the first.

I got these pics today and really don't know what the bird is. It seems likely for a Pomarine Jaeger, but I really can't say as I have never seen one before. There were 2 flying togetherWish the camera had acquired better focus .

Thanks. I think the blue color really fooled me. Reason I posted it was the wings didn't look right. Blue color may have been some reflection.

I am pretty sure this is a little blue heron. Doesn't quite fit what I have seen before and I'm not sure I've ever caught one in flight. Nothing else seems to fit.

Thanks Blackburnian

thanksJefferson Shank

Kerri, I think you are right. I have seen so many Red-Tailed hawks here, I think I convinced myself this had to be one. My initial impression when looking at the bird through my binocs.was a falcon. Should have stuck with that. The peregrine definitely has that white collar.

Got these pics this morning. Very windy, probably more than 40 mph. This raptor caught my eye from a distance fighting the wind. Took some quick shots. I am pretty sure it is a Red Tailed Hawk, but that white collar seems unusual. It really stands out in every pic I have, from all angles. I do think I see patagial marks and a darker tail and it seems to definitely be a buteo so I went with Red Tailed. Just wondering if others think the white necklace is unusual.

Thanks Birdbrain. Didn't think of Scoter, wing shape looked too stubby.

Not sure on any of these, but maybe they can be ID'd. The first I think may be a Manx Shearwater. I saw all of these birds on Jeanettes pier today, and the Manx has been reported there many times. This is the only shot I got, but it did have a white underside when viewed with my 12x bins (much too windy today to try to use a scope). Wing shape looks like it might be right for Manx. The next pic shows a group of birds that I saw several large flocks of. Thinking maybe Red Breasted Merganser as I see long thin bills and the color pattern looks right. I can't come up with an ID for the last 3 photos. Because of the wing shape and color I am thinking some sort of pelagic, maybe Auks of some kind. Forgot my Sibley's in VT, so I am relying on what I can find online and haven't found a good reference for seabirds yet.

Thanks all. Interesting discussion

Here is one of the photos that I cropped more and took out all color adjustments. Hazy due to high crop.

Thanks Robinhood. That orange at the base of the bill has me confused as well. It might be a little enhanced with the editing, but I'm sure it was there even in the unenhanced photos. That's why I wasn't sure about Ruddy.

More distant birds. These were diving ducks and the only thing I can think of is Ruddy ducks, but I'm not positive. Hopefully the pics are good enough for ID. I had to enhance the photos to pick up details, so the colors might be off slightly.

Thanks Jefferson Shank

I got these pics of a distant flock of shorebirds. None of the posts I have made have been easy, as the birds have all been quite far off. Probably why I am struggling with the ID. This is no different. I think these are Dunlin, as the extreme crop shows a downcurved bill. Pic taken 2 days ago.