Argentina/Drake Passage queries (1 Viewer)

J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 21, 2008

• #1

I have just returned from an excellnt trip to the Antarctic Peninsula with a few days around Ushuaia. Attached are my mystery photos !!
The Cinclodes consist of 2 rather dark birds seen near the Marshall Glacier while the other , browner bird was photgraphed near the coast. I found very little relationship between the Cinclodes I saw and the species groupings in the field guides !
The Ground-tyrant was also seen near the Glacier....it is in every way a normal Dark-faced ground-tyrant except that it has a clear ( though rather strangely shaped ) supercilium....expressly forbidden by the field guides! Has anyone else seen this? or am I missing some obvious alternative i.d.?
Finally the Albatross, seen in the Drake Passage ( photos on a separate post).....it has a number of features suggestive of Grey-headed...but the underwing pattern is wrong, being more suggestive of Yellow-nosed or Buller's. I am 99% certain that the upperpart view is of the same bird as it was taken at the same and was adjacent to the other view on my memory card.
Any thoughts on any of these birds would be most welcome !!

John Hopkins

 

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J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 21, 2008

• #2

Argentina/Drake Passage queries

Attached are Albatross photos from previous posting....

 

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njlarsen

Gallery Moderator

Opus Editor

Supporter

• Dec 21, 2008

• #3

I don't know if the species differ that much around the globe, but my Australian field guide shows this Albatros underwing a better match to the Gray-headed than Buller's? Buller's should have essentially no black along the rear edge, while the amount here looks OK for adult GH?

Niels

 

birdboybowley

Well-known member.....apparently so ;)

• Dec 21, 2008

• #4

My NZ fieldguide seems to point at a better match being Grey-headed also

 

J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 21, 2008

• #5

Thank you both for your replies. I saw a large number of adult Grey-headed on the crossing and they all had the typical underwing pattern as portrayed in the field guides...i.e.with a broad dark indentation of the leading edge into the white centre. This bird however , seemed to have a much narrower dark leading edge with only slight indentations into the white...it also seemd small-headed and small-billed. But, maybe, as you say, within the range of variation of Grey-headed.

John Hopkins

 

D

dave44

Active member

• Dec 21, 2008

• #6

You're right its a Buller's Albatross - like you say it has the nice neat black leading edge to the underwing.

 

rockfowl

Mark Andrews

• Dec 22, 2008

• #7

John,

Mostly guesswork but..
1/2 - Bar-winged Cinclodes
3 - Looks good for White-browed Ground-Tyrant
4 - Dark-bellied Cinclodes? Heavy looking bill, weak wing markings

The Albatross IMO is a Grey-headed due to the broad 'ragged' leading edge and fairly substantial trailing edge

Mark

 

Last edited: Dec 22, 2008

J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 22, 2008

• #8

Thanks for that Mark. I also thought that the Ground-tyrant looked not unlike White-browed...but it shouldn't be there.....they only get Dark-faced and Ochre-naped around Ushuaia. Not sure where that leaves me !!

John.

 

Rasmus Boegh

BF member

• Dec 23, 2008

• #9

jhopkins said:

...they only get Dark-faced and Ochre-naped around Ushuaia. Not sure where that leaves me !!

Click to expand...

Not sure why it appears to have a narrow pale eye-brow (caused by light?), but it's still a Dark-faced. Otherwise I agree with Mark.

 

J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 23, 2008

• #10

I don't think the supercilium is a trick of the light as I have 2 other photos that show it looking exactly the same...but I agree it does look odd....very thin and wavery......aberrant plumage?

John.

 

J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 26, 2008

• #11

Anyone ( preferably with experience) like to try their hand at the Cinclodes please?

John.

 

Rasmus Boegh

BF member

• Dec 26, 2008

• #12

jhopkins said:

Anyone ( preferably with experience) like to try their hand at the Cinclodes please?

Click to expand...

Just in case you missed it, I was referring to those when I wrote

Rasmus Boegh said:

Otherwise I agree with Mark.

Click to expand...

 

Last edited: Dec 26, 2008

J

jhopkins

Well-known member

• Dec 27, 2008

• #13

Thanks very much for all of the above. At the risk of overstaying my welcome here, I am still struggling with the Cinclodes. Below is a pic of another one photographed at the Marshall Glacier, and clearly different, and much paler than the dark bird in the 2 pics in my original posting.

The other 3 images are of another bird in a completely different location ( but still near Ushuaia) which seems different again.Thanks a lot for your patience.

John.

 

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Rasmus Boegh

BF member

• Dec 29, 2008

• #14

First is another Bar-winged (almost entire eye-brow buff; brownish-buff patch on neck-side [though sometimes reduced]; a bit of spotting on lower throat/upper chest, but not really streaky and otherwise virtually plain below) and the remaining three are Dark-bellied (supercilium from around eye and behind is whitish; relatively large bill; rather extensive streaking below, but no pale belly-patch).

EDIT: As it may be helpful, here's a link to a bunch of photos of the three "problem" cinclodes; Dark-bellied, Grey-flanked and Bar-winged of the southern nominate ssp. Notice the things I mentioned above. Grey-flanked is most like Bar-winged in total size and bill, and most like Dark-bellied in plumage (but with less extensive streaking below and a pale mid-belly). Depending on your connection, the page may take some time to load:

http://www.fotosaves.com.ar/Passeriformes/Furnariidae/FotosFurnariidae.html

 

Last edited: Dec 29, 2008