ML48415061

Age and sex

Adult Male - X

Observation details

I discovered this bird earlier in the day while conducting point count surveys. Came back with recording equipment and captured it in mist net. Abstract to publication in press: Combining data on morphology, behavior, and gene sequences, we document the first known case of hybridization within the thrush genus Catharus. During June of 2008, we observed a male bird at a montane forest site in south-central Vermont that repeatedly exhibited song characteristics of both Bicknell’s Thrush (C. bicknelli) and Veery (C. fuscescens). Handheld examination determined the bird to be a yearling male with plumage characteristics predominantly of Veery, morphometric traits within the ranges of both Bicknell’s Thrush and Veery, and a weight intermediate between the two species. While the hybrid vocalized only with Bicknell’s Thrush calls, its songs were reminiscent of both Veery and a mixture of Bicknell’s Thrush and Veery. Mitochondrial DNA (NADH dehydrogenase 2 and cytochrome b genes) revealed the bird's mother to be a Veery, and nuclear data (beta-finbrinogen 7 and myoglobin 2 introns) revealed DNA of both Veery and Bicknell’s Thrush, supporting Bicknell's Thrush as the father of the hybrid. This hybridization is notable given that Bicknell’s Thrush and Veery generally breed in different habitat types at different elevations. This discovery is also important in light of the vulnerable conservation status of Bicknell’s Thrush and the decline in Veery populations across much of its range

Technical information

Model

COOLPIX S10

ISO

50

Focal length

6.3 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/4.0

Shutter speed

10/5773 sec

Dimensions

2816 pixels x 2112 pixels

Original file size

896.49 KB