Mystery Bird
A bird that was photographed in Tennessee that appears to be a partial albino has birders guessing. The person who observed the bird said it was about 6" in length. It did appear
to have a tuft but does not look exactly like a tufted titmouse. It was spotted near a bird feeder. Do you have any ideas? So far some of the top birders have suggested tufted titmouse, Carolina chickadee, Junco, blue jay, or blue-gray gnatcatcher.
I was thinking either titmouse or chickadee myself.
to have a tuft but does not look exactly like a tufted titmouse. It was spotted near a bird feeder. Do you have any ideas? So far some of the top birders have suggested tufted titmouse, Carolina chickadee, Junco, blue jay, or blue-gray gnatcatcher.
I was thinking either titmouse or chickadee myself.
posted by birdchick at 3:51 PM
11 Comments:
My first thought was a scissor-tailed flycatcher... until I saw its tail :(
The beak seems longer than a chickadee's... so maybe tufted titmouse. But s/he's not showing any tuft in that photo so it's hard to tell. When I look at photos online it looks most like the blue-grey gnatcatcher but I've never seen one of those in person.
Could it be a hybrid ?
kitmarlowescot2
Hey, Sharon:
I really think Carolina Chickadee. The slightly gray coloration on this bird's "shoulder", right above the wing, looks identical to the same spot on a chickadee. And I think the white head makes the black bill look longer than it looks blending into the black face on a regular chickadee.
Congratulations to best new cover girl on the scene, Cinnamon!
Dave
Looks like a Northern Mockingbird.
My untrained eye, and my Peterson Field Guide tells me it's not a Junco because the bill is not the right shape. It's not a Blue Jay, because they are larger than 6 inches. The Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers are too small. It might be a Chickadee, but if so, I would think it would be a Black-Capped, not a Carolina, due to the length of the bill more closely resembling the Black-Capped (despite all the cross-breeding). The Titmouse is the right size, but because there's no crest, I'm not convinced that's it either. The bill reminds me of a Warbler's, although which one, I have no clue. Could it be a bluebird? Eastern Pewee? This could get interesting.
It looks a little like a grey jay but without the grey head cap.
I'm in the group that thinks its a partial leucistic Carolina Chickadee. It looks great for that down to the white shafts in the primaries, if you ignore the head.
My first thought was jay. But tufted titmouse is closer in size. Interesting.
Too bad the size is so wrong, because Gray Jay would seem nearly perfect. Too bad the beak looks so wrong (white feathers at play?), because one of the Buntings might also work. Get a bander over there pronto!
Is it a carving?!?... ;p
I have to admit the big eye, longish tail and thick, bluish legs scream Titmouse to me, but also feel the bill appears far to long as well. Actually, if you look at just the head I get a very strong impression of a White-breasted Nuthatch although the body is all wrong. I'd love to see a full-sized image with the bill in sharp focus to get a better idea of the structure though. At any rate, I think the legs appear too stout and too blue for chickadee, and the bill looks WAY too stout and long as well. Chickadees have those real short little needle bills - barely stouter than a Dendroica Warbler - and smaller eyes. Despite the apparent inconsistency in bill length I still favor partially albinistic Titmouse.
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