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Thick-billed Kingbird or Cassin's? Southern California (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter dancinec
- Start date
Chris Benesh
So much work, so little time...so let's go birding
Hi Dennis,
An open bill can give a pretty misleading impression of size. Your bird is not a Thick-billed Kingbird for several reasons, but I also don't see it as a Cassin's either. The paler-looking head with slight masked look, the relatively low contrast between the dark and light areas on the head, and the really long, pointed primaries all suggest that it is a Western Kingbird.
Thick-billed Kingbird is a bird to be on the lookout for in the winter months in southern California. Thick-billed is a massive-billed, chunky kingbird with a dark cap, a very white throat, and short brownish wings and tail. See:
http://www.bird-friends.com/pics/ThickBilledKingbird/ThickBilledKingbird4LR.jpg
Nice image!
Chris
An open bill can give a pretty misleading impression of size. Your bird is not a Thick-billed Kingbird for several reasons, but I also don't see it as a Cassin's either. The paler-looking head with slight masked look, the relatively low contrast between the dark and light areas on the head, and the really long, pointed primaries all suggest that it is a Western Kingbird.
Thick-billed Kingbird is a bird to be on the lookout for in the winter months in southern California. Thick-billed is a massive-billed, chunky kingbird with a dark cap, a very white throat, and short brownish wings and tail. See:
http://www.bird-friends.com/pics/ThickBilledKingbird/ThickBilledKingbird4LR.jpg
Nice image!
Chris
