Richard Larsen

Trying to ID a bird seen near Puget Sound in Tacoma Washington earlier this month. Seems as if it should be easy, but I am drawing a blank, and don't like answers from various computer bird ID programs. (Maybe it is a juvenile Starling.) Any help appreciated. Rich

Still trying to sort warblers, perhaps females, from Parker River NWR in Mass from late May. Trees were full of warblers, and I was jumping from one to another with camera, but I think the first three are the same species - some might be the same birds. Same for the last two - I am guessing female Blackpoll Warbler for them, but certainly not sure. Maybe the first three are Yellow Warblers, but to me does not seem quite right for such a call. Any help appreciated.

Four more birds for which I have not been able to establish an ID. Taken at Parker River NWR this past weekend during a very good warbler migration. They hop about a lot, and the foliage is thick, so apologies that some of the pictures not great. Any help appreciated.

Aidan B - thank you. Rich

My wife and i were lucky enough to be at Plum Island this past weekend, with a large warbler migration ongoing, but I have not sorted my warblers yet. I have attached 4 pics of 3 non-warbler birds seen, for which I am unable to provide an ID. The first is perhaps a female Orchid Oriole. The closest I can come on the second is Eastern Towhee but seems to have way too much red in the breast. The third and fourth pics were together on the rail of a fence - probably male and female - I think there is one pic of each. Any help would be appreciated. I tried to match the pics to species others reported on ebird, but was not successful.

From my trip to Florida a month ago. A Great Blue Heron was poised to do some fishing. An Anhinga either surfaced in the GBH's area or swam thru it. Suddenly GBH dropped from above onto the Anhinga, with a squawk - for about three seconds there was chaos of wings and beaks as the birds battled - and then the GBH ran away across the swamp with the Anhinga in pursuit for a couple of seconds until he called off the chase. Apparently, one does not mess with an Anhinga.

In Florida, in early February, I called pictures 1-4 'Dunlin', altho I still wonder if they could be Western Sandpipers. The first three pics are the same bird, I think the bill too long to be Western, and maybe back too gray. so, I went with Dunlin. Number 4 is a different bird, again I called it Dunlin. Number 5 I went back and forth Willet vs Red Knot, settled on Red Knot, but for all I know could be something different. In a different location, an area called Bayley Tract on Sanibel Island, I found the bird shown in 6 and 7. Long way away, pics may not be good enough. I ended up thinking maybe it was an Eastern Phoebe but wondering if others have better ideas. Thanks.

A sparrow seen at Grissom Wetlands in Florida. All are the same sparrow. Pretty sure it is a Savannah Sparrow - trying to get my confidence up on bird IDs - and hoping I don't embarrass myself. Thanks for any verification or correction. First three pics. Then, 3 pics of a bird for which I don't have a guess, altho a little voice keeps telling me 'not another Palm Warbler'.

Sorting my Florida bird pictures - after scratching my head and considering options, I keep coming back to 'Palm Warblers' for all of these. Nothing against Palm Warblers, was just hoping for more species. Are these indeed all Palm Warblers? All taken in first half of February this year. Picture 1 from Honeymoon Island SP near Clearwater. Pictures 2 and 3 from Grissom Wetlands near the east coast - they are the same bird. Picture 4 from the Circle B Bar Preserve in Polk in Central Florida.

While on the west coast of Florida a few weeks back, there were a lot of winter-plumage shorebirds that drove me crazy, including some large groups of 'resting' birds in multiple places. I have 'concluded' that they must be Willets, based on the fact that I can't fit them to be anything else. Hoping for confirmation or correction. Also, I observed one plover that seems to be a Wilson's Plover - I think it is correct - but they are new-to-me, so again hoping for confirmation. Thanks. Rich

Thanks, Avery. My 'Western' vs 'Semipalmated' was based strictly frequency, not any features of the birds. Ebird shows many dozens of Westerns on this beach every day, and the last Semipalmated was shown back in late October. And, the Cornell range maps show semipalmated in the US only for nesting and migration - all winter populations appear to be south of the US mainland. So, my designation is based on probability, not on any wisdom I have in identifying them. I'm not good enough to make an independent assessment. Rich

Trying to sort out non-breeding plumage in small sandpipers. I can't say that I have any experience doing this, so I may have embarrassed myself - they might not even be sandpipers. These all come from tidal mudflats at Bunche Beach / San Carlos Bay near Sanibel Island, FL, on Feb 6, 2022. Attached are three photos I am calling Western Sandpipers, and three that I call Least Sandpiper (these three are views of same bird). Confirmation or correction would be appreciated. Thanks. Rich

Sorry, the system posted before I was ready. There was missing text, and I think I already posted one of the hummers. The first and 4th pictures are obviously hummers, I think the first is Anna's, and the 4th Rivoli's - but hoping for confirmation or correction. The second and third I think are both Least Sandpipers, again hoping for comment. I think the 5th is a Western Sandpiper, but might be another least - or maybe something else. Please ignore number 6 for now. Thanks. Rich

Thanks to all. I gave bad information on number 5. I reviewed the date / time stamp again, and realized it came from Patagonia, AZ, at the Paton Reserve - not Gilbert - and I saw it shortly after others had been seeing Lazuli Buntings in a couple of trees nearby. They said 'the buntings had left, but they will come back later'. I thought I had missed them all. I think this was a female that had not gone very far - or maybe was just the first one to return. I think 'Brown headed Cowbird' female is the right call on number 6. The sun was very low, giving everything a reddish hue, thus the coloration. I did not know where to start on this one, but once pointed in that direction I can see what looks to be the right markings. Rich

First, thanks to all whom have helped me with my previous postings. For the first picture, from Gilbert Water Ranch, I feel I should know this guy, but have drawn a blank. Number 2 I believe is a Lincoln Sparrow. Number 3 I believe is a greater (or lesser) yellowlegs Number 4 does not have lighting to illuminate the gorget, so not sure if it is enough to ID which hummer this is. Number 5 is from Gilbert Water Ranch, as are number 1-4 Number 6 is from Lake Cochise in Willcox Number 7 I believe is a Harris' Hawk, seen at Sweetwater in Tucson Hopefully I won't embarrass myself with any of them. Thanks. Rich

Thank you. Rich

Still sorting pictures from Arizona at the end of November / early December. I think the first one is a female Lawrence Goldfinch. I saw a lot of Lesser Goldfinches, but the yellow in the wings here is very different. Pretty sure about this one. The second is in the shadows, but I think it is a Clay-colored Sparrow. Not so sure on this one. These were both taken near Green Valley, at Canoa Preserve. The 3rd one is quite fuzzy - sorry - from Gilbert Water Park. I went thru the ebird hotspot sightings, and the answers I come up with are maybe Sage Thrasher or Swainsons Thrush, but I sure don't know. The last one is also from Gilbert, and I think it is a Lincoln Sparrow - but hoping to get wiser opinions. Thanks for any help. Rich

My wife and I came across 4-6 of these birds flitting thru the scrub trees near the top of Coronado Peak, in Coronado National Monument, AZ = almost in Mexico. They would not sit still or come out in the open, so pictures are not great. I can't make it match one of the bluebird species, but maybe it is. Seems to have blue on the wing, and in the center of the back. The pictures my well not be the same bird, but from same group - should be the same species. Any help appreciated. Wife votes - 'either Western or Eastern Bluebird'. Thanks. Rich

My wife and I were in SE Arizona for a mix of hiking, birding, and getting away from the November cold and clouds in Vermont. We did the same last year, same time. We are not expert birders, and not locals, and only there in November, so we can't give the best advice. eBird Hotspots show two San Pedro areas, and the Sierra Vista EOP as 250+ species areas, and a bunch of 200+ species areas. Seems you need some sort of authorization to get into the EOP. We liked Ash Canyon Bird Sanctuary as well - many active feeders there when we went. We just go to the eBird Hotspots.

On recent trip to southern Arizona - Sierra Vista San Pedro House area - I saw this bird in the bushes. I am guessing Rock Wren, but I am no expert. The bill seems to be more curved than most Rock Wren photos. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. Rich

About 6 weeks ago, April 27, I was birding at Plum Island / Parker River National Wildlife Refuge - Eastern Massachusetts. Was looking for Northern Waterthrush - which I found here later - but came across this bird as well. I think they are the same bird, but I have claimed that before and been wrong. The first picture is much clearer than the second. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

On December 4 and 5, I was at the San Pedro River NCA / San Pedro House east of Sierra Vista Arizona. There were some birds that seemed to me to be Pine Siskins on steroids - more the size of a robin than that of a small sparrow. They photos are labeled Pine Siskin, but that is just a guess. Each day there a flock of 6-8 birds would come to a tree above a feeder - maybe for berries from the tree, since I did not see them at the feeder. Maybe they were Pine Siskins, and I just made a mistake on size. Maybe they were a flock of female Red-wing Blackbirds - they have embarrassed me before. I have a half dozen pictures, and can include more if needed - but for now I have posted 3 that hopefully will allow a definitive identification. Thanks. Rich

I have a hawk picture taken from a long distance with telephoto, so the answer might be that it is too vague. But, my guess was the dark SW version of a Red-Tailed Hawk - another person suggested a Harris Hawk - so I am wondering if anyone has a wiser answer. Also, what I assume is a Yellow-rump Warbler, Audubon Warbler version - but, if I am wrong, am interested in wiser opinions. Thanks. Rich

Thanks to all - and I need to apologize. I stated that 5 and 6 were the same bird - and it appears I was wrong. I took picture 5 - and then a picture of a different bird not shown - and then took picture 6. I THOUGHT it was the same bird - but they were a minute apart - and clearly I was incorrect. Rich