CLOSED: Identify This Bird Please Vol. 1

Hi Mrs. Ed. I have some pictures JUST like your two!! Even down to the tree it was seen in! I saw mine in the late summer following a sudden wierd intense fast storm. The air after it passed was filled with an odd assortment of birds that don't usually hang out together and they were flying around and vocalizing like crazy. After watching for a few seconds I realized that they were catching bugs that were flying around in big swarms. I posted the photos here and the consensus was that it was a female painted bunting! I don't know if that would be possible with your sighting if you saw it in Illinois though.

Here is my post with my photos for comparison.

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/681265/

and I'll post one of the photos here just so you can see how similar ours are!

Thanks Resin and Lilyfan. I guess I'll probably never know. I can't remember if I got out the video camera or not. I'll have to check. I know one thing, I've never seen a bird (other than hummber) move as fast as these did!

Honkers maybe?

Geese, probably Canada Geese.

Resin

I'm so excited! I was going to guess Meadowlark too *before* I saw OldNed's post!

MrsEd, that little green bird is so cute. Even with just 2.1 Mp, it's a nice pic among the lovely green leaves.

resin.thanks, thought they probably were.

I saw a new one a little while ago, and I actually had my camera in my hand! It was so cute. . . tiny and I first saw it on the ground, then it flitted to the tree, then actually came over to the tree I was standing under to check ME out. At first I thought it must be one of the nuthatches because it was so brave, but it wasn't. It perched on top of the branches rather than clinging to them, and when it got closer I could see it wasn't a nuthatch. It was very quick! I'm excited I was able to get a picture of it as good as this.

Here's another pic, not nearly as good, but shows its breast. This little guy (or girl) was so quick, it was hard to get it in the viewfinder long enough to snap a pic. For this picture, I think I just pointed the camera where I thought it was and snapped, hoping it would be in the frame.

If someone were to make me guess, I'd say some sort of vireo because it was so tiny and quick, but I don't know.

This message was edited Jan 5, 2008 10:22 AM

With the white around its eye, I would guess a White-eyed Vireo ..........

Edited to guess a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher Final guess !!!

This message was edited Jan 5, 2008 12:34 PM

So great to have a new bird around Peeper! Congratulations.

Perhaps a types of Warbler. :-)

HA!!!! WARBLER… can't resist IDing those warblers, can you, Pelle.

I didn't ID it, just tried to get it in a family . :-) We'll see.

I felt like it was more brown than it looks in the first picture. More like the second picture. Not sure if the camera is lying or maybe in trying to optimize the pic in my photo program I got it grayer than it should be. It does look grey in the first pic, but as I was looking at it, trying to get a pic, I was thinking of it as more of a brownish bird. It does look a lot like the blue grey gnatcatcher, but they are only supposed to be here in central Texas during the summer according to the Cornell website.
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Blue-gray_Gnatcatcher_dtl.html

Most of the warblers I looked at are about 4" long. If it was 4", it was just barely 4".

How about a Kinglet then?

You may have it with the kinglet, Pell. It looked a lot like the ruby crowned, although I didn't see any red on it. The webpage says they don't show their crown much. It's possible it was olive colored.

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Ruby-crowned_Kinglet.html

I'd go with Ruby-crowned Kinglet too.

Resin

Ditto Resin...RCKI....whoops, I mean Ruby-crowned Kinglet

That 4-letter code is handy for large lists in the USA but can surely be confusing for those who don't use it often. Hasn't and probably won't catch on outside of North America. (How would you use it for an Emu?)

OlNe......ahh! ...I mean OldNed

How do you tell the difference between a hawk and a falcon?
I am assuming this picture is a hawk, am I correct?
Thanks
Cath

Facial markings are one way to tell the difference ( Falcons have mustachio and Hawks don't) can't see the face in this pic but the wings appear to be much blunter than a falcons. In my humble opinion I do think it is a hawk.

Can anyone ID this one. The picture is not very good. I don't know if it is a baby or what. It is very fuzzy.

Betty

Thanks Gary, that will be helpful when seeing them in flight.

Thanks Resin

Here's a stumper. He was at the top of a very tall tree against a grey sky. Sitting there for a long time. These pics are with extreme zoom.

#1

#2

#3

Difficult with the bad light, my best guess is a Northern Mockingbird.

Resin

Thanks Resin.

A sparrow? But if it is a sparrow, what kind? To this newbie, they all look alike. I have been looking through my sparrow references and am not sure which one it is. Okay, I know I'm showing my stupidity, but I have to learn from someone.

Thanks.
GG

Female House Finch

Resin

Thanks. Well, that explains why I could not figure out which sparrow it was! Duh!!

GG

GrannyGrunt.........The only stupid question is the question not asked. Asking questions is how we learn.

Thanks adelbertcat, I'll remember that.

GG

Gardenpom: We have hawks in this part of Florida too that look like yours. I thought it might be a Cooper's Hawk: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=coopers+hawk&btnG=Google+Search

or possibly the Broad- Winged Hawk: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Broad-winged_Hawk_dtl.html

I am by no means trying to dispute Resin, but since you were just guessing on the Mockingbird, could it also be a Northern Shrike?

I have Shrikes on the brain because as I was "studying" my Texas Birds book last night, I finally figured out what a bird is that I've been admiring out at our hunting lease in Albany, TX (near Abilene) for the past 10 years. It's a Loggerhead Shrike! I always see them out there in the pasture at the top of mesquite trees and just think they are so striking! At least I'm pretty sure that's what they are. Last time I was out there was over a year ago and I wasn't "into" birding yet then but I've been noticing them forever. I just never remembered to research what they are when I got back to civilization.

Anyway, Shan's bird reminded me of them because that's how I always see them, at the top of a bare tree, and all fluffed up.

Sorry, definitely not a shrike, the bill is too small and slender for that, shrikes have a stout, heavy bill, and a larger head too. The black eye mask would also be visible, even with the dull photo one can still see it is just grey there.

Resin

A new one for me...I have two shots.

2nd shot.