ML644251458

Observation details

Stately walk with much tail bobbing. Behavior reminded me of Forest Wagtail. Most of the time it foraged slowly in dense shade in a shallow depression (mowed grass and bare ground) under carob and peppar trees (pipit hollow). It flew into a dense toyon thicket briefly, then emerged in the pipit hollow about 10 minutes later. I never saw it in a tree, though others reported that it would occasionally become arboreal. Distinctive "dot dash" posterior of auriculars--a white roundish spot with a black "comma" ventral of white spot. Like a semi-colon. Greenish olive and brownish back with visible but not prominent dark streaking, thus possibly assigning this individual to subspecies yunnanensis (breeds in NW Russia, NE China, N. Japan) (Birds of the World account). Dull brownish wings with thin buffy wing bars. Heavily streaked breast with three streaks coalescing into dark linear stripe at center of breast. Pale slightly buffy supercilium. Lores a warmer buff than supercilium. Buffy malar. Buffy flanks; breast and belly whitish. Throat white. Pink legs. Silent. 3rd state record. Found by Greg Sanders three days ago. One of the prior state records was assigned to yunnanensis. The other record did not appear to have been identified beyond species level. This bird was present through 5 Nov.