"Bird ID ?(pics)

[jonny_redhorse]

ton of these birds this morning while I was out at the lake...sparrows maybe?....warblers?...to me it's a brown bird with stripes

[Steve Foss]

The first one is a hermit thrush and the second a song sparrow, Jonny.

[jonny_redhorse]

Thanks again Steve!...holy moly! my field guide's version of the hermit thrush sure doesn't look like this one! ....File this guide in the "blankety blank" bin! ...Sibley here I come!

[Steve Foss]

The key to picking this thrush out of the litter of other basically similar thrushes is the hermit thrush's brighter rusty tail compared with its grayer body.

In general, field guides like the National Audubon Society guide (if it's the one I'm thinking of) that rely on photographs are more confusing than those that use illustrations. I've got several of the photo-based NAS guides just because I seem to collect field guides, but they sit on my shelves gathering the dust of disuse.

[jonny_redhorse]

yup,Steve,It's the Audubon's field guide.....guess it's ok but some of the colors in the guides photos are "waaaay" off!...like this hermit thrush!...I would never have guessed it to be a hermit thrush even with the book turned to the right page!...no doubt the photographs(coloration) of some of the birds vary from guide to guide...

[Steve Foss]

Yeah, that's why the photo guides aren't the best. It's tough to get a representative view in a photo. Much easier with illustrations. And, as an example, Sibley shows illustrations for three distinct populations of hermit thrush: Pacific, interior west, and taiga/eastern.

[jonny_redhorse]

It's in the mail!....My Sibley that is! ...thanks again for that extra "push" to purchase it Steve!

[bonelach]

Doesn't the first picture look like a Veery? It seems to big to be a Hermit Thrush in my opinion. I could easily be wrong though. We recently had a Hermit Thrush under the feeder and later that day we had a Veery visit. There is a noticable size difference., but very similar plumage.

[Steve Foss]

A veery is a possibility and one I considered, but the key field mark separating them is the amount of bright rusty color. The veery has that more vivid rust color all up and down its back, tail and head, while the hermit thrush has an overall grayer/browner appearance with a distinctly rusty tail. This bird shows the noticeable contrast between the bright rusty tail and the duller brown/gray back I've come to expect in hermit thrushes.

The level of speckling on the throat/breast isn't generally a good field mark because it varies from bird to bird quite a bit.

Only 1/4 inch separates them in size, which is too close for me to separate them. Sibley says the veery is 7 inches long and the hermit thrush 6 3/4 inches. Plus, of course, if a bird's feathers are fluffed it looks bigger, and I don't doubt there's some size variation among individuals in both species.

Anyway, that's my thinking on the ID. All that being said, bird ID, particularly off a lone image that shows some but not all field marks, is an inexact science, and God knows I've been wrong before.