ML270528351

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Tags

Multiple species

Observation details

No write-up required for EAME, however I believe that this bird was initially confusing and eventually was a good learning experience for me, so I will write what I have found in investigating the ID of this Meadowlark. According to Identification Guide to North American Birds by Peter Pyle, young birds undergo their first prebasic molt in early fall, so even if this bird was a young one (as originally suspected) it would have already fully replaced its juvenile plumage, or at least molted the head area. Therefore, we are simply dealing with a non breeding plumaged meadowlark (still not an especially easy task). This bird has a highly contrasty eye stripe and head cap and buffy coloration extending into the flanks, all pointing towards Eastern Meadowlark.

Technical information

Model

NIKON D7200

Lens

200.0-500.0 mm f/5.6

ISO

800

Focal length

500 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/7.1

Shutter speed

1/2000 sec

Dimensions

964 pixels x 643 pixels

Original file size

759.09 KB