Birding is fantastic fun. At the same time, it is also filled with mind-bending challenges. One must utilize every thing from sight to sound, the habitat, the bird's behavior, it's location, geography, date, time, etc. all to make a proper identification.
This weekend, my friend Chris Murray and I saw a BLUE-HEADED VIREO on the Eastern Shore. Truly, this is a rare sighting as this blue-headed bird shouldn't be in this area so early into the fall migration. But it was.
Now, had I known more about this bird's migrational habits at the time, I would've had the camera firing photo after photo as visual proof of this bird's presence. Next time, I'll be more prepared. At the very least, I'll be more knowledgeable about such things. Which leads me to today's subject: a misidentified wren, for which in this instance, I was prepared. I've never seen or heard a SEDGE WREN, so my camera was firing away at a mass of grass, hoping for one semi-clear photo to take home and enjoy.
So I thought there was a SEDGE WREN calling this weekend at Truitt's Landing in Worcester County, MD. It had that typically old-timey typewriter clatter. You know, the one that goes... type type type and then it chatters as if backing up to the beginning of the next line? Okay, maybe that isn't the best description.
Compared to a MARSH WREN, the SEDGE WREN'S song is noticeably different. But when I got home and blew up the photos, that calling wren became a MARSH and not a SEDGE. Such are the challenges of birding and bird identification. I'm at 279 Maryland birds for 2008. 21 away from the big 300!
Here are some more photos from this past Sunday on the shore.
SANDERLING
TWO SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS
BLACK SKIMMER
BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER
UPLAND SANDPIPER
BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER
A FLYING BUFFY
Good Birding,
Dan
3 comments:
Dan,
As always, your blog is quite interesting. What I'm really commenting on is that banner photo of your family + (Empid.?)flycatcher. What's the story there and is it a doctored photo? BTW I finally got my Yellow-bellied today...at Finzel...with my wife Colleen. Pretty sweet!
Best,
David Yeany II
David,
Yes, that is a totally doctored photo! The bird, presumably a EW Pewee, was at Hughes Hollow. The car shot with my wife and son was taken at the Black Headed Gull location. But, being that my blog is mostly about birds, I had to doctor it a bit.
I should say that minutes before that photo of the Empid. Flycatcher was taken, I was enjoying my FOY Least Flycatcher. At long last...
Congratulations on your long-awaited Yellow-bellied Flycatcher.
-Dan
Upland and Buff-breasted Sanpipers are tough birds to get around here.-I like to read about birders who can admit that they don't always get id's right on the first try.-It gives me hope.
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