ML285647711

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Media notes

Plumbeous Vireo photographed by Curtis A. Marantz on 1 December 2020 along the Kiowa Road entrance to Lake Murray, Mission Trails Regional Park, La Mesa, San Diego County, California.

Observation details

Before leaving the park, I “spished” at some of the flowering eucalyptus trees on the west side of the entrance road in the hope that the Cape May Warbler would come in for better views. Although the warbler never appeared, I managed to find a Plumbeous Vireo that was attracted to my sounds. I saw this bird relatively briefly, but at close range in the lower branches of the trees, and given that I tried to get photos, I did not study it all that carefully before it disappeared. This bird never vocalized during the brief period that we had it in view. This was a relatively small passerine, yet it was larger than the warblers and kinglets that were in the same tree. I also noted that it had a stouter bill that was short and blunt-tipped, that it had a sloping forehead and a rounded crown on a head that was larger in proportion to the body than that of a warbler, a short and inconspicuous neck, a plump body with a full-chested appearance, and a medium-length tail, but I failed to compare the length of the bill or tail, relative to field-marks on the head and body, respectively, and I failed to note the primary projection or even the shape of the tail. This bird’s plumage patterns were typical of one of the solitary-type vireos, but its coloration appeared to combine cold-gray and whitish without any green or yellow tones apparent in the conditions under which I made my observations. I noted essentially that the head, neck, and back were medium-gray, and that throat, breast, belly, flanks, and undertail coverts were whitish. I thought there was some grayish at the sides, but I cannot now recall if the flanks were also washed with gray. I have some recollection that the underside of the tail was mostly dark, but with a narrow fringe of white along the inner edges of the outer feathers that created a striped pattern when I saw the tail from below. The wings were about the same color as the upperparts, and they had two relatively bold wingbars that represented white tips to the greater and median coverts, but I cannot recall noting the color of the edges on the remiges on a bird that I saw best when it was facing me. The face pattern consisted of white spectacles that combined a supraloral stipe and an eyering, and with both about the same width and sharpness. I think the dark face contrasted fairly sharply with the white throat, but it would be good to check my photos to confirm this. The bill appeared to be mostly black, but the lower mandible showed a moderate amount of medium-gray basally. The eyes were dark, but their precise color eluded me, and I cannot now recall noting the color of the legs or feet, but I suspect this will be evident in my photos.

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS 7D Mark II

Lens

EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

ISO

500

Focal length

400 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/6.3

Shutter speed

1/500 sec

Dimensions

4222 pixels x 2819 pixels

Original file size

9.1 MB