I missed the flock of Whimbrels that had been reported at 176 Street on Tuesday but at least I ended up with one bird, a Black-bellied Plover. The bird was hanging out in a freshly cut hayfield accompanied by a pair of Kildeer.
*A few days after posting the image I began to have comments from readers about whether the Plover was actually an American Golden-Plover or perhaps a Pacific Golden-Plover.
After conferring with a number of well respected birders the overwhelming verdict is that it's a Pacific Golden Plover. I suppose this is one of the many reasons birding can be so exiting.
There are a few who will disagree but the calibre of those who voted for PGP make me comfortable to post the results.
Here are some of the comments:
1. Hello John,
Fellow birders (expert) Russell Cannings and Michael Force emailed that it was a Pacific Golden Plover.
I just got your email, the tail looks slightly different in this shot. I might repost on facebook. Lets see what Mike Tabak says for now.
Christopher
2. John; I also asked Russ and Roger, Jeremiah, Carlo.and Iyla(no response yet).
At this point based on collective opinions I would say it is completely reasonable to relabel your bird as a Pacific Golden –Plover. Good find! Most adults are brighter than this(more golden and obvious) This is what threw me off at first.
We get a few PGPL each year in our area. Adult birds are more often PGPL than AGPL, while juveniles AGPL are more common than PGPL.
Mike
3 Always a pleasure to hear from you. Now this bird was quite a challenge and I can see why Pacific & American were considered one species not that long ago. In my (very) humble opinion, I'll go with pacific golden-plover based on:
1. Upright posture
2. Front-heavy
3. Largish bill
This would be a great photo ID quiz for sites like ABA or magazines like Bird-watching. I always enjoy seeing your photos.
Cheers
Quentin
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Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva) |
On the way to Grant Narrows I thought would drop into the Little Campbell Fish Hatchery on 184th Street, somewhere I have visited just once before, a visit cut short by a torrential downpour. There were Common Yellowthroat, Rufous Hummingbird, Hammond's Flycatchers, Great Blue Herons, Mallards with a single duckling, House Finch, White-Crowned Sparrow and American Robins. No pictures worth posting, just a nice walk along the forest trails.
Grant Narrows
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| A pair of Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) try to make a nest at the boat launch but it is doubtful that it will be successful with all the disturbances that come with the upcoming summer boating season |
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| The pair had to re-locate to another location each time a boat came in. |
John, great captures!
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