Three Texas Rio-Grand Birds - Need ID Help (1 Viewer)

[RichMan]

I just got back from a weekend birding trip to Texas's Rio-Grand Valley (Feb 19th). I got 37 new birds (WooHoo ), but I have three that I can't ID. I'm hopping someone might be able to tell something from these pictures. Thanks!!

1 Tropical Kingbird OR Couch's Kingbird


2 Humming Bird


3 Who knows??? but I'm hopping it's a Dickcissel.

I appreciate any help you can give. Thanks - Rich

 

[KenM]

Think I’d go Tropical for the Kingbird (long slender bill) and Dickcissel, pass on the hummer.

Cheers

 

[birdmeister]

I will pass on the hummer. That kingbird pair is so tricky without the calls, so I'm not confident in either Tropical or Couch's.

 

[njlarsen]

I am going out on a limb here, but the hummer I think is one of the Ruby-throat/Black-chin pair.
Niels

 

[AveryBartels]

Agreed with Black-chinned/Ruby-throated for the hummer and Dickcissel for the 3rd bird.

 

[01101001]

ID help Several from Pacific coast of mexico

Following a vacation in Huatulco, Mexico in January, I still have several photos that I haven't positively identified, and would be grateful for some help. Many thanks Tony Johnson Ontario, Canada

www.birdforum.net

(Guessed 4/5 in the quiz going on wing structure, lol, misidentifying only the one that all others got correctly.)

 

[Butty]

(Guessed 4/5 in the quiz going on wing structure, lol, misidentifying only the one that all others got correctly.)

Posted in wrong thread.

 

[01101001]

But the link is useful, and that was my main point--especially so the long bill, strong face mask and grey-green (as opposed to green) back (plus wing shape jizz???) all point to Tropical Kingbird (not sure how to judge the well-markedness of coverts). Pray don't take my word for it, but then I have no reputation to lose in that respect anyway, so...

 

[RichMan]

Thanks guys! I knew the Kingbird would be a longshot, and I can't pin down the hummingbird. I'm going with Dickcissel for the last one though.

 

[01101001]

Free-flying black-chins tend to bob their tails repeatedly when hovering, a characteristic that often can be used to identify females in the field.

(from Black-chinned Hummingbird Banded at Gastonia NC, 13 Feb 2004 (Archilochus alexandri))
A shame you don't have a photo showing the bill length in full and that the photos are--very understandably--a bit blurry.

Here's all you need (and don't need) to know about these two; if you're serious about learning how to seperate them, you may want to try ageing and sexing your resident hummingbirds based on this guide:

EDIT: Any yeas or nays for the 👑🐦 ID?

 

[01101001]

IMHO, all features from here favour Tropical Kingbird except for the shape of the crest, which varies between the two photos (and also varies between photos in the birds' profiles at allaboutbirds.org). The relative slimness of the body also varies between the photos.

EDIT: Here's a quick and dirty list:
longish bill,
prominent hook at the end,
dingy chest,
weak contrast between chest and throat,
weak wing panel contrast and pale edges to primaries,
short primary extension to tertial length ratio.

Add to that features from the other thread on BF mentioned in one of my previous posts.

 

[nartreb]

Where exactly in Texas? Peterson's show Tropical kingbird only in the coastal southern tip of Texas, east of McAllen or so, and Couch's along the river from the coast up to almost Del Rio.

 

[Microtus]

With that bill, I'm thinking it's a Tropical Kingbird. I think the hummer is a Black-chinned/Ruby-throated.