Tuesday Teaser: 090611

IMG_9812
Is this the toughest Tuesday Teaser yet? We took this photo of a just-banded warbler last week at the bird banding station at the Erioe landfill, where the fall banding season is under way. (And yes, NJMC Naturalist Mike Newhouse has a good idea what species this is.)

Click below for a side view.


IMG_9820

6 thoughts on “Tuesday Teaser: 090611

  1. Rick Wright

    The more I look at it, the more I believe that this is a Common Yellowthroat. Anybody agree with me that the Geothlypis warblers (sensu novo) are the toughest parulids to identify from photos?

    Reply
  2. Mike G.

    If Mike had the bird in hand and had to think twice about the ID, the bird is probably uncommon. Also, Jim say this is “the toughest Tuesday Teaser yet”. Two clues that make me think it’s not a CYT.
    A white eye ring, a blue-grey cap, and yellow on the upper breast. The only warbler I can think of that matches the description is the Nashville Warbler.

    Reply
  3. julie mccall

    Fun, fun, fun. Unless this bird is rocking some wingbars off-camera that we can’t see, i’m going to go with Common Yellowthroat as well. A female, though. Mike, you made me think twice, but I’m not so sure about your context clues… Jim said Mike Newhouse had a pretty good idea of the ID, and merely *asks* if this is the toughest teaser yet… Also, maybe it’s the lighting, but I’m not seeing a blue-grey cap. I think it’s just shadow in the topmost photo. In the profile, it looks much more olive-brown to me.
    But you did make me resort to thinking long and hard, and I could be wrong. These kind of teasers are my favorite, though. They’re great learning tools.
    Revisiting the idea of Mourning Warbler, I can see how it could possibly be an immature… hmm… we don’t have a view of the belly, though, so who knows?
    I’m sticking with Common Yellowthroat, but I’m interested to see what Mike N.’s call was!

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Rick Wright Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *