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Your I.D. skills needed (1 Viewer)

KC Foggin

Very, very long time member
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United States
These shots were taken a year ago this past November and I have never given it a conclusive I.D. The bird was between the size of a rock pigeon and a mourning dove. I'm giving you two views.
 

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Looks like female or immature Boat-tailed Grackle. The obvious problem with this is that they eye seems to be dark. However, the birds in Florida and on the Gulf coast have dark eyes so if it was photographed there that would explain it.

I see that you live in South Carolina KC so even if it was taken there (not too far from Florida) it could still be Boat-tailed, either a bird from Florida that has moved north a bit or a local bird that just happens to be dark-eyed. I doubt that the divide between dark-eyed and pale eyed birds is a sharp one.

I'm guessing it's a young bird by the rather short tail but it is just a guess.

Spud
 
As an English teacher, I was fascinated by your time expression "a year ago this past November". Isn't our language such a wonderful thing?
 
The body size, shape and plumage coloring look perfect for Boat-tailed Grackle, but that beak / forehead don't look close. Typically the Beak is quite long and seems to blend in with the forehead at almost the same slope, even on fledglings. On this bird, the beak seems to be too short and it looks like it is almost perpendicular to the forehead. Unless we can attribute this to camera angle or fluffed up feathers on forehead, it's hard for me to see a Grackle.

KC,
I know you are pretty familiar with grackles from a previous post. Since you saw the bird, why did you not think it was a Grackle?
 
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The beak is what had me mystified as well Dave. My local college ornithological center didn't feel it was a grackle either. Coloring yes, face and beak no. They didn't come up with a difinitive answer either so after digging through old photographs I decided to try it on here.

Steve, do they not use that phrase in Europe?
 
My vote goes to Boat-tailed Grackle, I think the angle of the head from below distorts the forehead somewhat, typical beak. Color of an immature bird. My 2$, ;0)
 
We do - it was just looking at it on the page thinking what a wonderful use of words. As Michael says it was easy to know what you meant but it looked reassuringly quirky. Lovely.
 
Fifebirder said:
Is this not an immature Common Grackle? I'd certainly say it's some sort of Grackle anyway.

The bill is kind of long or thin, somehow not like a Common. G. So go with Boat Tailed. Have not seen it myself.
 
scampo said:
As an English teacher, I was fascinated by your time expression "a year ago this past November". Isn't our language such a wonderful thing?
There is a difference between English, English and American English;-)

CB
 
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