December 26th, 2005. Amherst, MA.
| Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis
| This afternoon our yard had several visits from this bright female Dark-eyed Junco
which I digi-scoped in rather gloomy conditions. The flanks were rather
bright pinky-buff, the color extending well up onto the breast sides, a
noticeably different pattern to the female 'Slate-colored' Juncos present.
This bird closely resembled two illustrations from the Sibley Guide (large
version) - the first-winter female ‘Oregon’ Junco on p.500, and also
the female ‘Slate-colored’ Junco from the Canadian
Rocky Mountains population on p.501.
The Eastern occurrence of Western forms of Dark-eyed Junco has been discussed at some length on Angus Wilson’s website (http://www.oceanwanderers.com/JuncoID),
and is well worth a visit. Having read the broad range of opinion
there, I felt a little ‘fried’, but still came away feeling that this
bird was probably from one of the Western populations of Dark-eyed Junco.
Any thoughts/opinions are welcome.
| Images taken using Canon Powershot A-95 through Swarovski HD telescope.
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