Did I Misidentify an Ovenbird? Lower Hudson Valley, NY (1 Viewer)

[gsimonel]

I posted this image to the Gallery and said it was a hermit thrush. Now I'm wondering if it might be an ovenbird. I took the photo in early May in a wooded area in Croton, NY. There is no sign of a black stripe on the head, but it's possible that that's just because of the angle of the photo. I've gone ahead and added a 2nd, much blurrier photo, just in case it's helpful in nailing down a correct ID. Thanks for your opinions.

 

[lockbreeze926]

'tis an Ovenbird. The orange and black on the crown can be hard to discern, and the angle from below doesn't help. Hermit Thrush would have a less-pronounced eye-ring and throat streak and would be warmer-toned.

 

[nartreb]

Yup, ovenbird. Besides the more visible eye ring, there's a stripiness to the way the breast spots overlap (including the really clean line along the edge of the throat, with a fairly clean-edged white area above it), extra pale bill, and horizontal posture.

I wouldn't say Hermit's are "warmer-toned" than ovenbirds. From the back, Hermit's shade of brown is closer to a neutral grey (except the rufous tail and wingtips), ovenbird more ochre (ie., containing a yellowish cast) by comparison. Of course, that doesn't really help from below, nor in leaf-tinted photos like yours.

 

[Microtus]

Definitely an Ovenbird

 

[KC Foggin]

Yup, an Ovenbird.

I still remember how happy I was when I found out what I saw as it was a lifer for me

 

[gsimonel]

Yesterday I went back to the same place where I took the ovenbird photos. As luck would have it, I got some nice shots of a wood thrush. Side by side, you can clearly see some differences between the ovenbird and the wood thrush.

 

[tom baxter]

Another subtle difference with Ovenbird that becomes more obvious when you look for it, is that their eyes are proportionately huge compared to the size of their head

 

[Scott98]

good to see photos of these two - I hear ovenbirds & wood thrush constantly, yet it's very rare to get my binos on them