One of the banders brought in an old newspaper from Wisconsin that has one heck of a front page story. Check it out (and be sure to read the caption):
Who knew so many of us had them coming to our feeder already!
Since the photo was taken at Bong State Recreation Area, I guess we can understand how the misidentification happened (giggle). For readers who are not familiar with a snowy plover, this is what one looks like the above bird is a male house sparrow…it’s understandable, they look so similar (not).
The article continues inside the paper…causing teenagers across the country to giggle at wacky birders. What kind of nature programs would be planned at Bong? I’m not sure, but they better make sure to have plenty of snacks.
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Wow. This is inexcusable! Don’t they have fact checkers?
Did no one there recognize a sparrow when they saw one? Wow. This boggles the imagination.
This is the website for the Bong State Recreation Area: http://www.bongnaturalistassociation.org/index.php
It was named for Richard Ira Bong, born on a Wisconsin farm to Swedish immigrant parents. He is United States highest scoring air ace, having shot down 40 enemy planes during WWII. He received the Silver Star and the Distinguished Service Cross. He was awarded the Medal of Honor by General MacArthur in 1944. He died after the war in a plane crash while working as a test pilot for Lockheed.
In fairness, the article is a few years old, so I’m sure there are better fact checkers in place. Plus, I’m sure there was some outraged bird person who sent in a strongly worded letter that that was no shorebird at the feeder.
Almost wish I could see the letter to the editor. I would love to know who the writer of that article jumped to the conclusion of shorebird.
Thanks for my big ole smile of the day!
We have these ‘shorebirds’ all over the southern coast of Maine….a bunch were at my feeder today in fact!
Feeling no small amount of relief that I was actually thinking “house sparrow” all along.
I did know it wasn’t anything like a sandpiper. Honest.
If it’s not one thing it’s a plover.
And I just thought someone was hitting the bong just a little too much while watching the birds.
I thought for a split second there – okay, maybe a BIT more than a split second – that I had been wrong all these years about house sparrows, that they were really these “plovers” of which I had never actually heard … Thanks for the tip.
I thought for a split second there – okay, maybe a BIT more than a split second – that I had been wrong all these years about house sparrows, that they were really these “plovers” of which I had never actually heard …
Sorry about the double post. Also, I just remembered that I have actually heard of plovers before, they just never actually cross my mind. I don’t know if they’re in RI … hmm.
A species that even someone who needs to double check his own IDs as much as I do can name with conviction…..Neotropic Cormorant! Thanks for the chuckle to start the week.
A snowy plover, eh? It’s actually legal to kill them and common black-hawks (see link for photo, but ignore the name) here in the U.S.
http://en.wikivisual.com/images/7/7b/Common_starling_in_london.jpg
I can see how the author made that mistake. I mean, they both have feathers, right?
Giggle, snicker, giggle.
I had a flock of Snowy Plovers on the corner of Suydam and Nichol ave., in New Brunswick, NJ. They were using the bushes for cover, and making dashes to the sidewalk for some seed someone had put out. Pretty cool stuff. I think they might be breeding there.