Mystery Birds
grrlscientist | June 28, 2010tags: King Rail, Marsh Hen, Freshwater Marsh Hen, Rallus elegans, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] King Rail, also known as the Marsh Hen or the Freshwater Marsh Hen, Rallus elegans, photographed at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 26 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/400s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Today's Mystery Bird seems a bit confused about its own identity,…
grrlscientist | June 27, 2010tags: Green Wood-Hoopoe, Red-billed Wood Hoopoe, Phoeniculus purpureus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Green Wood-Hoopoe, formerly known as the Red-billed Wood Hoopoe, Phoeniculus purpureus, photographed in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, 18 January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300, 600 mm VR lens with 1.4 extender ISO 500, f/5.6, 1/250 sec.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery bird species has a remarkable breeding strategy, can you tell me what…
grrlscientist | June 26, 2010tags: Village Indigobird, Vidua chalybeata, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Village Indigobird, Vidua chalybeata, photographed in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, 17 January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300, 600 mm VR lens with 1.4 extender ISO 500, f/8, 1/1000 sec.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This Old World genus of birds is filled with species that have a very close relationship with another species of bird -- can you tell me the nature of that…
grrlscientist | June 25, 2010tags: Ancient Murrelet, Synthliboramphus antiquus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Ancient Murrelet, Synthliboramphus antiquus, photographed zigzagging rapidly roughly 15m below the waves off the south side of Alki Point, Seattle, Washington. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Ron Shimek [larger view].
Olympus OM-10 in an Ikelite Housing, Kodachrome 64 film.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This poorly-known mystery bird species has two remarkable behaviors that are thought to reduce predation at the nest -- what…
grrlscientist | June 24, 2010tags: Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, photographed at Monterey Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 7 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Can you tell me something remarkable about this mystery bird's beak/mouth?
The pelican's gullet pouch really can "hold more than its belly can" (as claimed…
grrlscientist | June 23, 2010tags: Western Scrub-jay, California Jay, Aphelocoma californica, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Western Scrub-jay, also known as the California Jay, Aphelocoma californica, photographed at Bodega Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 23 December 2007 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery bird species performs a remarkable behavior that has intrigued scientists and even…
grrlscientist | June 22, 2010tags: Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] newly hatched Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus, photographed at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 1 June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/640s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This cute little bird was or will be, at some point during its youth, protected by a spectacular display by one of its parents. Can…
grrlscientist | June 21, 2010tags: Marbled Godwit, Limosa fedoa, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Marbled Godwit, Limosa fedoa, photographed at Galveston Island East Beach, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 1 June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1000s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This species is comprised of a seemingly homogeneous population of birds. However, scientists have recently found that this species shows some geographic variation…
grrlscientist | June 20, 2010tags: Bristle-thighed Curlew, Numenius tahitiensis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Bristle-thighed Curlew, Numenius tahitiensis, photographed on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge -- one of the most remote coral atolls on earth -- a US territory in the north Pacific Ocean [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joe Fuhrman, 2010. I encourage you to purchase images from this professional photographer. [larger view] I encourage you to purchase images from this professional photographer.
NOTE: Please name at least one field mark that supports your…
grrlscientist | June 19, 2010tags: birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Black Redstart, Phoenicurus ochruros a newly-fledged youngster, photographed at Arberes, Ariege, France. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Adrian White, June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D40x with 70-300AF.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This is a very challenging mystery bird to identify, but the bird -- a fledgling -- is just so cute (and the picture is so nice) that I just had to share it with you. Any ideas as to what species this is?
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 18, 2010tags: Brant Goose, Brent Goose, Brant, Black Brant, Branta bernicla, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Brant Goose, also known as Brant or Brent Goose, and, on the west coast as the Black Brant, Branta bernicla nigricans, photographed in Moss Landing, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 6 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/640s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This lovely bird is found all along the west coast…
grrlscientist | June 17, 2010tags: Eared Grebe, Black-necked Grebe, Podiceps nigricollis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Eared Grebe, also known as the Black-necked Grebe, Podiceps nigricollis, photographed in Monterey Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 5 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1000s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This migratory species, photographed in California, is challenging to distinguish from another, closely-…
grrlscientist | June 16, 2010tags: Pacific Loon, Pacific Diver, Gavia pacifica, Gavia arctica, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Pacific Loon, known in Europe as the Pacific Diver, Gavia pacifica (formerly lumped with Gavia arctica), photographed in Monterey Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 7 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This elegant mystery bird's common and scientific names have a…
grrlscientist | June 15, 2010tags: Sedge Wren, Short-billed Marsh Wren, Cistothorus platensis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Sedge Wren, formerly known as the Short-billed Marsh Wren, Cistothorus platensis, photographed in in Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 21 April 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, 1/500s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This small bird is a member of a group of New World birds that includes some very complex groups, including this one. Can you identify this species?…
grrlscientist | June 14, 2010tags: Western Gull, Larus occidentalis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Western Gull, Larus occidentalis, photographed in Monterey Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 6 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1000s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This challenging mystery bird resides on the western coast of the USA -- the individuals in Seattle are much paler in appearance than the ones in California, such…
grrlscientist | June 13, 2010tags: Northern Gannet, Morus bassanus, Sula bassana, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Northern Gannet, also known by a suite of common names, including solan, solan goose and the solant bird, Morus bassanus (formerly; Sula bassana), photographed from the Channel ferry near Calais, France. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Adrian White [larger view].
Nikon D40x with Tamron 70-300AF.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery seabird, photographed in France, has a special character that allows it to make a living in its own…
grrlscientist | June 12, 2010tags: Horned Screamer, Anhima cornuta, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Horned Screamer, Anhima cornuta, photographed in Brazil along the Rio Negro, 3 degrees, 5 min S and 60 degrees, 26 minutes W. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dave Rintoul, 2010 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Today's Mystery Bird is the only species in its genus and, along with two other species in a "sister" genus, is placed into a peculiar taxonomic family. Can you tell me what family these birds are placed into and tell…
grrlscientist | June 11, 2010tags: birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] feet [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
I have some questions about each foot depicted above. Can you tell me;
what each foot is used for?
for each foot type, can you tell me if its possessor walks or hops when on land?
one foot type is found only in one genus worldwide, can you tell me which foot that is and the species that has that foot? This foot has a special character that it shares with another (much larger) taxonomic…
grrlscientist | June 10, 2010tags: Red Knot, Calidris canutus, Tringa canutus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Red Knot, Calidris (Tringa) canutus photographed at Bolivar Peninsula, Galveston County, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 26 April 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1000s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
There is something very sad about this beautiful migratory species, can you tell me what that is?
The red knot stopover on the Delaware…
grrlscientist | June 9, 2010tags: Brandt's Cormorant, Phalacrocorax penicillatus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Brandt's Cormorant, Phalacrocorax penicillatus, photographed in Monterey, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 5 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1250s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Its specific name, penicillatus is Latin for a painter's brush ("pencil of hairs"), in reference to white plumes on its neck and back during…