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Posted by Robin Diaz on 19:03:45 10/24/11
In Reply to: Odd Looking Black-Throated Blue posted by Frank
Your bird sounds like a gynandromorph-type bird, where the bird has characteristics of both male and female. Black-throated Blue Warblers seem particularly prone to this phenomenon. True gynandromorph birds usually are bilateral (one side has male characteristics, the other side has female characteristics). If dissected, they would possess both testes and ovaries. The majority of Black-throated Blue Warblers displaying gynandromorphy are "mosaics," or have a mish-mash (definitely not a scientific term!) of male and female characteristcs. [see photo]
A paper produced by Braddock Bay Bird Observatory furnishes interesting information:
http://www.bbbo.org/news/2007/btbw.html
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