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Recent content by Leucistic Magpie

  1. Leucistic Magpie

    Red-necked Phalarope? Southern Oregon Coast, USA 31 Aug.

    To be honest, I haven't seen one before either and I struggle with shorebirds too! But Red-Necked Phalaropes are just one of those birds that happen to jump out at me, thanks to growing up reading bird guides.
  2. Leucistic Magpie

    Downy or Hairy Woodpecker? - Edmonton, Alberta River Valley

    OK thanks. I was under the impression that bill-length wasn't the most reliable feature for identification. Poking around in other threads, it seems that it's a clearer indicator than I had realized! Usually, I don't put much effort into figuring out which species I'm looking at, but it's...
  3. Leucistic Magpie

    Red-necked Phalarope? Southern Oregon Coast, USA 31 Aug.

    That would certainly be my guess as well, based on the distinct stripes and the location. I don't think non-breeding Red Phalaropes have the stripes and it sure looks like a phalarope to me. Do you have any reason for thinking it's something else?
  4. Leucistic Magpie

    Downy or Hairy Woodpecker? - Edmonton, Alberta River Valley

    I had a good birding day today, which was my first day intentionally birding in ages (see my first eBird checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S193474763). The one bird that had me stumped, though, is what I think is a Hairy Woodpecker, except for the dark spots on the outer tail feathers...
  5. Leucistic Magpie

    Alberta Hawk

    Thank you very much! I do have Sibley's, but I find it difficult to use for birds with a lot of plumage variation. None of the pictures in Sibley's closely resembles these two. Also, a personal fault of mine is that I tend to pay too little attention to juvenile plumage. I didn't mention it, but...
  6. Leucistic Magpie

    Alberta Hawk

    I'm not very good at identifying hawks, because (a) I typically only see them while driving and they're usually Red-Tails, and (b) because all the different colour-morphs throw me off. I saw two of the same species this afternoon while out for a walk in the Edmonton, Alberta river valley. It's a...
  7. Leucistic Magpie

    Mystery Curlew and stray Cassin's Finch??

    An interesting theory, and I had no idea that snipe's bills were flexible like that, but this bird's bill was consistently bent. I had difficulty getting a good side profile, so the apparent lack of a bend in photo 3 is just a result of the angle, and in photo 1, it's because the snipe had its...
  8. Leucistic Magpie

    Mystery Curlew and stray Cassin's Finch??

    Well that's exciting! I'm glad I decided to check it out--and that I took some pictures. It's not every day I get to see a bird out of its typical range. I didn't realize that eBird had a verification process, so that's good to know! Thank you, everyone, for helping me out. That's two new birds...
  9. Leucistic Magpie

    Mystery Curlew and stray Cassin's Finch??

    That would be my assumption as well, given the location.
  10. Leucistic Magpie

    Mystery Curlew and stray Cassin's Finch??

    Yes! I'm almost positive that's the same bird. So based on that much clearer photo, does it look like it was correctly identified as a Cassin's Finch? And if so, what are the tell-tale signs?
  11. Leucistic Magpie

    Comment by 'Leucistic Magpie' in media 'IMG_7727.JPG'

    Thanks!
  12. Leucistic Magpie

    Mystery Curlew and stray Cassin's Finch??

    Thank you both! Well that explains why I had such difficulty identifying it. I did notice that the plumage was a lot closer to that of a snipe, but I'd never seen a snipe either and the beak really threw me for a loop! A shame that the finch isn't positively identifiable. It was unfortunately...
  13. IMG_7727.JPG

    IMG_7727.JPG

    Barred Owl near Beaver Lake, Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Spotted in June while on vacation.
    • Leucistic Magpie
    • Media item
    • owl
    • Comments: 3
    • Category: North America
  14. Leucistic Magpie

    Mystery Curlew and stray Cassin's Finch??

    Hi all, I'm new to the forum, but I'm happy I discovered it. I have questions about two birds: Bird #1: What: Some sort of curlew Where: a. Location: Crown land, about 150 metres away from the Red Deer River in the Alberta (Canada) foothills, SW of Sundre b. Habitat: Mostly coniferous forest...
  15. Leucistic Magpie

    Greetings from Alberta

    Hi everyone! I wish I'd discovered this forum sooner. For the last decade or so, I've enjoyed both photography and birding as casual hobbies, so I often end up with photos of birds I'm trying to identify and wish that I had someone to help me out. I'll be asking for assistance ID'ing a couple...
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