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Nevada & Arizona Birds (1 Viewer)

ednamex

Well-known member
Need help with these. First 2 are from Las Vegas area. The others are from Utah mountains
Ed
 

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1 - I see a hint of a crest, so I'm for Juniper Titmouse, with some orange food in its beak (plus a bit more of the same on the rock in front of it). Too short-tailed for Bushtit, surely?

Agree on the others.
 
#1 I'm not sure if the bird is leucistic or if it's just a bad exposure. My impression was a titmouse (Juniper would fit well), with something yellow in its beak. A bushtit is another strong contender - I'm not familiar enough with either bird to decide between the two on the basis of this photo.

edit to add: "this photo" includes a blur on the head that might or might not be a crest... any other photos would help. Edit 2: Nutcracker makes an excellent point about tail length. I don't think that can be put down to blur.
 
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My best guess is a juvenile Verdin for #1. #3 is the one I would put down as a possible escapee; I can't think of any normal North American bird with those very bright yellow undertail coverts, plain gray belly and breast, and and that very plain face. The undertail coverts provoke a vague memory of some bulbuls, but I am not at all familiar with that group.
 
3 is an orange-crowned warbler

Tom, I see how the bright undertail coverts can suggest OC Warbler.

I think this bird has too hefty a bill (wrong color as well) for a warbler, and I think tail shape fits Western Tanager better too. I would have expected more of an eye-ring to be visible in this shot on an Orange-crowned Warbler, too.

There is a photo in the Stokes Guide which shows a very similar dull Western Tanager with bright undertail coverts.
 
Maybe I'm wrong given the quality of the pic but #3 looks flycatchery to me, probably a Say's Phoebe or less likely a female Vermilion.
 
Regarding #3, having done an image search for juvenile Western Tanagers, I do find some similar to this bird, though I have never seen a live one this gray below myself.

Regarding #1, I see Nutcracker's points. Ed, can you tell us where in the Las Vegas area the bird was seen? If it was in the mountains, I think Juniper Titmouse is a possibility; if it was on the valley floor, I still think Verdin is a reasonable guess.
 
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