Aveschapines

Of course! Nobody had asked before 😄

Heron Hairdryer 😄

Sorry to be a little scarce lately! I had some major internet problems and the September craziness is in full swing (the 15th is Independence Day here, and we have activities all month long). But I've deleted the ID requests that were reposted, as well as @Charlie Spencer's replies to them and my own. @Shazam, I hid your post rather than deleting it, bcause you haven't reposted the ID request. If you need the post back let me know.

Cattle Egret, showing us where he got his name 😄

X-pat bird:

I merged your two threads to keep everything together.

That collar in the first pic does look a little Meadowlarky, but my impression is also Hooded Oriole. Second pic looks nothing like a Meadowlark. The "collar" could be an illusion due to wet feathers.

American Goldfinches also have seasonal plumage, and look quite different in breeding and non-breeding plumage; in fact at one point they were thought to be two different species! And here the Great-Tailed Grackles have two local common names; people call the males clarineros and the females zanates, and many people think they're two different species too. All these things become clearer with experience with the specific species involved, and you'll also get a sense of what a molting bird looks like.

Also when a bird is molting into a different plumage, the exact pattern of the colors will vary depending on exactly which feathers this particular bird has shed and regrown in the new colors. So trying to identify exactly where the colors are in this case isn't very helpful. Many birds look different as juveniles, so when they shed their first set of feathers the new ones grow in different colors and patterns. As mentioned above, some even go through several changes before they become adults. Also quite a few species have breeding and non-breeding plumage, so they look different at different times of year, with molts in between. One hint that you may be dealing with molting is if the colors aren't completely symmetrical, and also that birds in molting sometimes look disheveled - they may have loose downy feathers hanging out, or have pin feathers that haven't fully emerged making them look less smooth and shiny than usual. When there are really irregular or asymmetrical patterns, like a white area on one wing but not the other, that also may be leucism (the bird lacks color in some feathers that normally are colored).

I notified Admin. It's usually a simple fix.

😇

Let's face it, you just wanted to be 13!

I'm not an Elaenia expert, but I've seen a lot of Yellow-Bellieds, and I have to say this doesn't look like one at all to me; crest looks way too small, tail too short, and body position and shape too round and short. I haven't jumped in but my best guess would be not a Yellow-Bellied.

Of course! Arthritic knees and bad backs make for great dance moves. 😛

Kind of like when your grandpa and all his friends show up at your senior prom?? 🤣