ML72443911

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Media notes

This female-plumaged Cassin's Finch was photographed by Curtis A. Marantz on 18 October 2017 at the headquarters of the Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, Imperial County, California.

Observation details

Shortly after Eric called me over saying that he had seen a plump, finch-like bird with a relatively bold supercilium we began hearing the “cher-de-leek” calls of a Cassin’s Finch that I noted to be clearer and sharper than the slurred calls of Purple Finch. After a bit of searching, Eric spotted this bird when it dropped down to the lower branches of a tree and eventually to the ground, where it remained for a short time before flying off. Not too long after this, we relocated the finch when it flew in and landed in a tree overhead, where it remained long enough for me to get some more photos. This was a small and noticeably plump passerine that appeared to have a somewhat larger body than a nearby White-crowned Sparrow, which was a little larger than I had expected from this species. I noted that the conical bill was longer than that of a purple finch, more pointed at the tip, and with a culmen that appeared to be straight. The forehead was steep but the crown was gently rounded on a head that appeared large for the size of the bird. The neck was short and inconspicuous and the body was plump and with an upright posture. I failed to notice both the primary projection and the length of the wings in the field, but I suspect they are visible in my photos. I did note that the tail was about as long as the body without the head and that it was weakly notched at the tip. This was a boldly marked bird, yet its coloration was subtle. The crown, which appeared to be a grayish brown with darker streaking, was demarcated by a dull, whitish supercilium that was at least relatively bold. I also noted some suggestion of an eyering and a dark brown auricular patch that had some internal streaking, but I cannot now recall other details of the face pattern. The underparts were whitish with fine, dark streaking on the throat that blended to broader and better-defined streaks of dusky that extended across the breast, sides, and at the upper belly and foreflanks. I never could see if the undertail coverts were streaked, but the underside of the tail appeared to be dark. Returning to the upperparts, the back and scapulars were a medium-gray color with relatively bold and weak-defined streaks that appeared to be sooty in color. I now have only a vague recollection of the wing pattern, which I think combined some suggestion of paler wingbars with streaking that presumably reflected pale fringes on darker remiges. I also thought the upperside of the tail combined dark feathers with well-defined fringes of a paler color that was presumably either whitish or light gray to produce a striped pattern. The eyes were dark, but I cannot now recall the colors of the bill, legs, or feet.

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS 7D Mark II

Lens

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

ISO

1600

Focal length

400 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/6.3

Shutter speed

1/250 sec

Dimensions

2507 pixels x 1609 pixels

Original file size

5.08 MB