Kansas bird (1 Viewer)

Hello, all. I'm brand new to the bird watching community and am having trouble identifying a bird that visits my backyard every once in a while. I'm trying to get an ideas on where to start investigating. The bird is a reddish-brown color and about the size of a robin. Any ideas on where to begin?

Thanks,
J

Start by having a bird guide. If you have one already, spend a bit of time looking it over to recognize characteristics of some basic bird groups (sparrows, fnches, thrushes, chickadees, blackbirds, etc.)

To try to identify a specific bird you've seen, look for general shape, size, colours (which colour where), beak shape, eye brows, eye rings, wing bars, tail lengths and markings etc. Try to narrow it down to one of the groups, like those mentioned above, and then start scrutinizing the likely contenders based on some of the more subtle details mentioned in the guide. Pay attention to geographic location and habitat. Consider behaviours (walking vs hopping, ground bird vs tree tops, bobbing tail, stationary vs constantly moving)

As for your bird, if it had a thick beak, then look for finch types (house finch, purple finch, female cardinal). If the bill was narrow and the bird was reddish brown rather than brownish red, then perhaps it was a thrush (veery, hermit thrush)

Hope that helps for a start.
Scott

jgraham said:

Hello, all. I'm brand new to the bird watching community and am having trouble identifying a bird that visits my backyard every once in a while. I'm trying to get an ideas on where to start investigating. The bird is a reddish-brown color and about the size of a robin. Any ideas on where to begin?

Thanks,
J

Click to expand...

Other thrushes. I'd look at Swainson's thrush, Grey-cheeked thrush, and Veery.

also try Brown Thrasher

Try also Canyon Towhee.

I suppose the bird which would be the most likely candidate, given your location and time of year would be the Swainson's Thrush. Next in line would be the Gray-cheeked Thrush and then the Veery. Hermit Thrush should all be up north by now. The Brown Thrasher, while also a candidate (and quite common) I believe would be somewhat larger than an American Robin. It has a long tail, yellow eye and scratches around in the leaf litter for food. Try looking in any of the several North American Bird Field Guides and you should be able to determine what the bird is. Good Birding!

hey Larry in my humble opinion a Brown Thrasher is very close to the size of a American Robin though the Thrasher may be longer with the tail I think that a Robin may be a heavier bird if not the same weight im gonnan try a google search

yeah according to some scientific stuff I found on google the Brown Thasher weighs 70 grams and the american robin weighs 77 grams a whopping quarter of an ounce more

I was rather unscientific in my post. Brown Thrasher is a good candidate as it is closer in size and weight to an American Robin. The thrasher is probably a little more common than the Swainson's Thrush. I suppose since I live in the same general area as the person making the initial post, I was giving my "impression" of what the bird may have been. The Swainson's Thrushes are in my yard nearly every morning now as they are lingering before heading north. (Also the Catharus thrushes are 0nly about 1/2 the size of the American Robin, but when seen singly they may seem to be about robin size.)

If jgraham can give us a little more information about the bird in question it could probably make an identification a "tad" easier. Did it have a "longish" slightly down-curved bill, long tail and a lot of spots/streaks on the breast? Did it pick around in the leaf litter and act rather shy/nervous? Then probably a Brown Thrasher.

If it was more or less out in the open, standing quietly on the ground. Then ever so often hopping a short distance to glean some insect, stand awhile, hop some more and get more insects, then it was probably one of the Catharus thrushes. The Swainson's would be the most probable, then the Gray-cheeked and lastly the Veery. The Wood Thrush is also quite abundant (and a nester in our area), but it likes to stay hidden in heavy wooded areas with a lot of understory and is heard much more often than it is seen. As I stated before the Hermit Thrush which is also one of the birds in this genus, is probably in the north country by now.

Wow! Everyone is WAY more experienced than I am! Thanks so much for all your input. As far as I can tell, I think I have a Brown Thrasher. We're trying to get a pic so we can study a little closer but so far the bird won't pose. Right now the wrens are competing for my attention...They've taken both real estate properties in my yard but so far seem to be living in one. Maybe they're "keeping" a house for summering!

Thanks,
J