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Posted by Brian Rapoza on 18:44:28 01/16/07
In Reply to: Re: ENP - Flamingo posted by Paul Bithorn
When I first looked at this somewhat fuzzy photo this morning, I thought that the whitish throat and streaky breast were a good fit for Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow. After speaking with Rock this afternoon (I told him I thought it was a Saltmarsh), then consulting the field guides (namely, the Photographic Guide to the Sparrows of the United States and Canada, by Beadle and Rising, plus Sibley), I'm still comfortable calling it a Saltmarsh. Though the interior race of Nelson's has a more streaky breast than the Atlantic race, the streaking on the breast of this bird seems too dark, and the belly seems too poorly defined for Nelson's. I've sent the photo link to Dr. Searcy to see what he thinks.
Since 1995, when Sharp-tailed Sparrows were split into Nelson's and Saltmarsh, the Coot Bay CBC tallies for these two species have been, to say the least, odd. Here's the breakdown from 1997 to 2006 (# of individuals seen are in parenthesis):
Nelson's: 97(0),98(0),99(0),00(0),01(0),02(22),03(5),04(3),05(3),06(20)
Saltmarsh: 97(6),98(12),99(12),00(39),01(13),02(2),03(4),04(9),05(1),06(1)
How does one explain the sudden shift from predominately Saltmarsh to predominately Nelson's? Likely, the availability of better field guides (Beadle and Rising was published in 2002) and resultant improvements in the skills of observers has something to do with it. Still, these can be frustratingly difficult birds to ID in the field.
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