[obol] "That's NOT a ______".... (a word of caution)

[sandyleapt at comcast.net]

Hi Paul and Harry.  I am beginning to see this hobby as an endlessly fascinating puzzle and I appreciate access to the collective knowledge found at this website.   When I walked Oaks Bottom with a friend on March 15th and misidentified the Common Goldeneye then doubted my Violet-green Swallows (which I am now comfortable with) I also heard what I thought was a Swainson's Thrush.   I listened again to the recordings of the Hermit and the Swainson's Thrush, it really sounded like the Swainson's.   I'm told it would be very unusual to see a Swainson's Thrush and it probably would not be singing yet.  That led me to this funny thought, what if what I heard was a Starling doing an imitation?

I would sure appreciate it if anyone walking Oaks Bottom this weekend would keep an ear out for singing Thrushes and let me know what they hear or see.  We might be able to get an "Earliest Recorded Arrival Trophy (to the Portland area)" for Swainson's Thrush.  I heard the Thrushes (I think there were two) along the footpath below the bluff while walking from the parking lot on Milwaukie Avenue to the lake.

Thanks

Sandy Leaptrott
NE Portland
 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: "Harry Krueger" <hkrueger at cableone.net>
> Paul,
> 
> Your post was well stated, timely, and necessary.
> 
> I believe this whole myopic id thing started with Peterson's field guides,
> which were both a boon and a curse to bird identification.  Casual birders
> (and some much more rabid...although not frothing at the mouth...yet) began
> to look for the that one (sometimes two) "arrow mark id clincher."  "If I
> see the __________, it must be a __________." While everyone's list is their
> own business [Go ahead, "count" the Northern Cardinal], and birding is
> primarily about fun and recreation for most of us, it is when we start
> sharing our discoveries on a public forum like OBOL (or any other state list
> server), or just the person we're out birding with for the day, that we owe
> it to ourselves and others to go a bit beyond the Peterson arrow stage.
> 
> What most beginning birders do not realize, and you stated so well Paul, is
> that a field guide...*any* field guide...no matter how well done (and there
> are some which are definitely better than others), can *never *cover the
> possibilities that even the average, casual birder will run into out in the
> field.  Variations within some species are endless, and often frustratingly
> confusing. Gulls, fall warblers, juvenile and immature sparrows, even
> "white-cheeked geese" could fill a book that would make my Bible look like a
> comic book. (Don't be too upset, especially on this weekend. I still read it
> sometimes, except the parts about killing all the quail in the desert -
> Numbers 11:31,32 - and selling sparrows for a penny - Matthew 10:29....I
> wonder if they had a House Sparrow problem back then too?...But I digress.)
> And whole books have been published about all of these families of birds and
> others, and still we haven't run out of variations, id problems, and fodder
> for ID Frontier geeks that don't have a social life. You know who you are.
> Put down the magnifying glass, stop staring at the rectrices and remiges on
> that gull photo, and back away from the computer slowly. (Sorry, I couldn't
> resist that one.)
> 
> Look, here's the deal.  We just have to understand that a book (or web site)
> can never do any bird justice.  *Nothing* can substitute for time looking,
> comparing, and yes, even taking notes, snapping pictures, or making sketches
> while out doing what this thing is all about... watching the birds
> themselves.  If I've learned nothing else in 35 years of birding, it is
> this: Study the birds themselves... not the books, not the photos, not the
> drawings, not the videos. Everyday is a new learning experience and
> opportunity. Yes, utilize what's available, but go out there and...bird!
> 
> Harry Krueger
> Boise, ID
> http://bird-brio.blogspot.com
> www.IdahoBirds.net <http://www.idahobirds.net/>
> 
> On Fri, Mar 21, 2008 at 7:12 AM, Paul T. Sullivan <ptsulliv at spiritone.com>
> wrote:
> 
> > OBOL:
> >
> > I have a friend who is a casual birder.  She keeps track of the birds in
> > her
> > backyard and goes on trips, but doesn't keep a list.  We've birded
> > together
> > from time to time.  On more than one occasion she has questioned my
> > identification of a bird.
> >
> > For example, we're looking out over a marsh.  A Song Sparrow is giving
> > it's
> > "cheep...cheep...cheep" in the tall grass nearby.  I say, "There's a Song
> > Sparrow right there," and she says, "That's not a Song Sparrow; I can't
> > see
> > it's spot, and it's too dark!"  Now, whether one can see the spot or not,
> > the familiar dark bird, flitting in the tall grass and brush, with the
> > twist
> > of the tail as it flies and the "cheep...cheep...cheep" is a Song Sparrow.
> >
> > Recently, relatively new birders have posted sightings on OBOL, giving a
> > description which fit a common bird, but they have ruled out the likely
> > bird
> > for some reason.  It's good to rule out "the bird it's not," but be
> > careful.
> > Don't rely on one field mark alone.  Consider winter plumage.  Consider
> > the
> > range of the species, it's habitat, behavior, and voice. (I know these
> > take
> > time, and they're not all in the books.)   Allow for regional variation.
> > Song Sparrows -- and many other species -- look different in the Pacific
> > Northwest than they do in the Eastern U.S.  Red-tailed Hawks and other
> > hawks
> > are highly variable across their range.  Allow for INDIVIDUAL VARIATION
> > too.
> > Don't get hung up on finding an exact match for your bird in a book or on
> > the Web.
> >
> > Expect what's likely to be here.
> >
> > Bird Watcher's Digest ran an article 10-15 years ago titled something like
> > "10 Rules for Beginning Bird Watchers," and the first rule was:  "It's a
> > Red-tail!"  Never mind the (choose your adjective) back, it's a Red-tail.
> > If I find that article, I'll share the other rules.
> >
> > At the other end of the scale, don't get hung up in finding subspecies and
> > hybrids (unless you want to -- and love long discussions on OBOL).  You
> > don't have to be able to tell if it is a juvenile, first spring, or
> > subadult
> > (unless you want to, again.) Some towhees are more spotted than others;
> > some
> > wet, some dry.  Some Savannah Sparrows show lots of yellow in the
> > lores/eyestripe, others little yellow.  Winter Yellow-rumped Warblers are
> > rally drab.  INDIVIDUAL VARIATION again.
> >
> > Maybe you won't identify all the birds you see.  If it's regular at your
> > feeder you can probably get help figuring it out.  If it just flies by and
> > gets away, say, "That one got away" and let it go.
> >
> > In any case, enjoy the birds.
> >
> > Good birding, everyone,
> >
> > Paul T. Sullivan
> >
> > "...all the people who can identify a dusky flycatcher when they see one,
> > ... won't add up to enough votes to elect a mayor.... You like those
> > little
> > red birds, whatever they're called?  So do I.... You're a birder, and
> > we're
> > pals."
> >             Kenn Kaufman -- BirdWatcher's Digest, Nov-Dec 2001
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > obol mailing list
> > obol at lists.oregonstate.edu
> > http://lists.oregonstate.edu/mailman/listinfo/obol
> >
> > To unsubscribe, send a message to:
> > obol-leave at lists.oregonstate.edu.
> >


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From: "Harry Krueger" <hkrueger at cableone.net>
Subject: Re: [obol] "That's NOT a ______".... (a word of caution)
Date: Fri, 21 Mar 2008 15:44:39 +0000
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