ML61575001

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

Found by Doug Karalun and Johnny Bovee earlier in the morning. Curtis and I were able to study this bird at length, as it perched in the open for most of the 90 minutes that we observed it. When perched near a Cedar Waxwing, this bird appeared about a third larger in length and mass, with a slightly longer crest. The head neck, and breast were a light tan, with the breast blending evenly into a light gray belly, except for a small whitish or pale yellowish area at the vent. The under tail coverts were a rich chestnut, and extended almost the entire length of the tail to the proximal edge of the yellow tail tips. The back was light gray like the belly, while the rump and upper tail coverts were an even lighter shade of gray. The face pattern consisted of a black chin and throat bordered by a chestnut malar stripe, and a narrow black mask that extended from the top of the bill, through the lores and eyes, and around the hindcrown (which was mostly obscured by the elongated crest); it was essentially a black ring encircling the head.Most of the forecrown was the same rich chestnut color as the malar and under tail coverts. A small white eye arc was present below and behind the eye. On the folded wing the remiges were primarily blackish, with a narrow whitish streak running along the leading edge of the vanes of the primary feathers, as well as broad white tips to the secondaries, a few of which also showed tiny waxy red projections at the tips. There was some white beneath the secondaries along the leading edge of the wing but I could not determine what feathers were responsible for this appearance (primary coverts?). The tail was also primarily blackish with a distinct yellow terminal band on the tail. The bird called several times, mostly giving a high pitched call like a Cedar Waxwing but with a distinct trill. It once gave a more emphatic version of this call as it flew off its perch.

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS REBEL T3i

ISO

400

Focal length

400 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/9.0

Shutter speed

1/640 sec

Dimensions

1805 pixels x 2347 pixels

Original file size

1.33 MB