Recently in 2008 Bird Quizzes Category

I might have been a little over the top with last week's bird because I even stumped some very good birders with that one. Even with the clues. The first hint "I have a similar diet to one of my relatives who lives on the opposite side of the continent", I was hopeful would help narrow things down to one of the two crow species who live on the coast. In the southeast we find Corvus ossifragus, the Fish Crow. But the snow in the photo, though possible in part of the Fish Crow's range, should have been something of a non-verbal clue.

The second hint was a link to a recording of the subject species call, and much like down in Florida where my friends at Halifax River Audubon will be Christmas Bird Counting tomorrow, where the American Crow and Fish Crow overlap, voice is the only reliable clue for identifying Fish. That same thing, voice, is how you decide if you are looking at an American or last week's bird, Northwestern Crow (Corvus caurinus) where they overlap. (I suppose, if they were perched side-by-side, you could use size as a clue as the Northwestern is smaller, but that is unlikely to happen very often - if at all.)

Hopefully this week's bird will be a little easier. They breed in the north, but have been reported in winter in most - if not all - of the lower 48 states, though you would more likely see them in a coastal region. Extra credit if you know the old name.

As always, good luck and great birding (next week will be the first quiz of 2009!). I've got to go dig out from the last 36 hours of snow . . .

Last week's tricky bird was an Eastern Meadowlark. About the only reliable field mark available is the white malar stripe below the bill. Generally speaking the best way with meadowlarks is by range or, when they overlap, you have to rely on voice.

For this week we have another species that is impossible to identify by plumage - range is the only way to tell and, even then, it may overlap with one close cousin and, in that case, you would have to hear the voice. Two hints can be found below the fold . . .

Not sure what last week's bird was so excited about when I shot that photo (it was "that time" of year, so might have been a hormonal thing . . . ), but the bird in question was a Willet. It should be pretty easy to narrow this week's bird down to a couple of possibilities, but then you have a 50/50 chance of choosing the correct answer!

Good luck and great birding!

Our bird last week was a Clark's Grebe, one of 2 species named in honor of Lt. William Clark of the Corps of Discovery. In breeding plumage the key thing to look for with the Clark's is where the black is on the head. If the black extends below the eye it is a Western, above the eye for the Clark's. In winter, however, you might have to look a lot closer as they are similar. Bill color - bright yellow on the Clark's and dull yellow on the Western - may be more diagnostic. It's about 15 (-9C) here this morning and I kind of wish I was hanging out with this week's bird - some place warmer!

Good luck and great birding!

I was just watching an episode of NOVA on PBS the other night that was about E.O. Wilson and he was being interviewed down in the Dominican Republic. In the background I could here last week's quiz bird saying "here I am - where are you - here I am" - one of the mnemonics for the Red-eyed Vireo (they must have shot that scene in the winter). This week we're out of the forest and on the water for our mystery bird.

Good luck and great birding!

That raptor perching on a wire down in south Texas last week was a Harris's Hawk. This week we have a bird found mostly east of the Rocky Mountains and, if you're in the southeast, there might be one in your yard right now. Good luck and great birding!

Okay, so last week's quiz was pretty easy, Northern Cardinal. But why did I choose a well known North American species for the quiz (and the answer to the bonus question)? I picked the cardinal because they are the State Bird of Illinois, home of President-elect Obama. This week a bird-on-a-wire to test your identification skills. Good luck and good birding!