ML268234821

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

Meadowlark found amongst beach vegetation halfway to tip of Charwell Point. First noticed by bubbling, almost musical "Brp-brp-brp-brp-brp-brp-brp-brp" call when buzzed by a Merlin. Bird also flushed by me several times, during which it made short, unhurried flights before landing on open beach cobble or sparse beach vegetation. I assumed it was an Eastern by probability but photographed it anyway out of curiosity. Viewed through binoculars, the bird struck me as very pale and tan-coloured, with almost no yellow on the breast and belly (in great contrast to my previous experience with meadowlarks, which consisted mostly of singing birds at the height of breeding season). When I switched from binoculars to camera, fine details on the bird, especially on the head and sides, were no longer distinguishable in the field. On first viewing of the photos, the images cautiously suggested to me tail plumage details on the lighter end of Eastern spectrum and darker end of Western spectrum as per article on Cornell website "Differences between Eastern Meadowlark, Sturnella magna, and Western Meadowlark, S. neglecta." https://www.birds.cornell.edu/crows/mlarkdiff.htm Upon posting photos to eBird, comments were received from three ornithologists. One indicated the bird is highly suggestive of WEME, but meadowlark group is variable and field identification by plumage details is a challenge. Two additional individuals indicated bird's appearance is strongly consistent with WEME. After initially posting the bird as Eastern/Western Meadowlark, I subsequently (October 6, 2020) revised the identification to Western Meadowlark. Motivated by the expert opinion, I reviewed resources and found enough information to warrant the more definitive identification. The Sibley guide indicates "Typical Eastern populations [have] ... dark crossbars on upperpart feathers run together along the feather shaft (Western has discreet crossbars without dark shaft streak)." As evident in the photos, the Charwell bird has "discreet crossbars without dark shaft streak" on its upperpart feathers. In addition to the tail feathers, note especially the tertials. The Cornell article, referenced above, describes the tail feathers as a diagnostic feature distinguishing the two species, noting on Eastern how dark the centre portions of these feathers are and how thick the bars are. This is contrasted with the same feather tract on Western Meadowlark, where the centres are described as much lighter than in Eastern. Again, in the photos of the Charwell bird submitted with this checklist, the ladder-like tail feathers meet the description and examples of Western Meadowlark in the Cornell article - and fall outside the range of Eastern examples. The Cornell website also has a photograph of Western Meadowlark bearing remarkable similarity to the Charwell Point bird: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Western_Meadowlark/media-browser/67378801 "New World Blackbirds: The Icterids" by Jaramillo and Burke notes that “Eastern Meadowlark can be separated from most Western Meadowlarks by looking at the pattern of barring on the tail and tertials: the bars are separate from adjoining bars and parallel-sided on Western Meadowlark, but neighbouring bars join up along the centre of the feather (shaft) on Eastern Meadowlark”. The exception to this rule is said to be Western Meadowlarks in the Pacific Northwest, which can show the darker tail features of Eastern. The tertials and tail feathers on the Charwell bird are consistent with the description "the bars are separate from adjoining bars and parallel-sided on Western Meadowlark". Finally, Jarmillo and Burke note “The extent of white on the third tail feather from the outside (R4) is also important. Eastern tends to have this feather mostly white while on western it is largely dark." R4 on the Charwell bird is largely dark.

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS-1D X Mark II

Lens

EF600mm f/4L IS III USM +1.4x III

ISO

1600

Focal length

840 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/9.0

Shutter speed

1/2500 sec

Dimensions

3000 pixels x 2000 pixels

Original file size

2.62 MB