Bird Identification

Thanks to Sheri Williamson (author of the Peterson Field Guide to Hummingbirds) and her recent post titled Orange-throated hummingbirds – not so mysterious after all, we have a solid contribution towards understanding the orange throats of some Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, although I contend that mysteries still remain. She explains the details of iridescent color on hummingbirds, and a […]

Now updated by a new post Progress on the Orange-throated hummingbird mystery. This adds to my previous post about orange-throated hummingbirds. After hearing from a couple of hummingbird banders affirming that they do not see a change in throat color in the fall as male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds go though their summer molt (and the fact

Usually. Experienced observers can almost always identify these species correctly based on careful judgment of head shape and bill size, but these are subtle and subjective impressions, and require a foundation of experience and/or direct comparisons with Sooty. Other features can offer supportive clues or draw attention to a potential Short-tailed, but are not very

The photo above was recently sent to me by reader Wil Domke. It shows an adult Trumpeter Swan (based on bill size and shape, and on Wil’s identification in the field) with a small yellowish patch on the loral skin. This yellow marking is similar to the yellow spot shown by most Tundra Swans. According