Bird ID question
December 5, 2021 7:58 AM Subscribe
A strange-looking bird showed up at my feeder this morning in Connecticut, and I'm wondering what it is. I have an hypothesis what it might be, but it doesn't quite fit with the pictures I've found online, and I wanted to see if other folks agreed or had other ideas. Here's a link to some photos & video, though the lighting is poor because it refused to move onto the sunlit side of the feeders.
The bird's feathers were largely dark, but bordered with light rusty brown. The "eyebrows" were this same light rusty color, and fairly pronounced. The beak was black. My best guess is an immature red-winged blackbird, but I can't find any pictures online that show some of the details I saw (particularly the edging of the feathers and the strong eyebrows.)
We live in a suburban area in Southeastern CT, but our house backs onto a fairly large tract of relatively undisturbed forest. We are about 1/4 mile from a major river (including wetlands) and about 3 miles from Long Island Sound.
It was not a starling. I know starlings well, and the tail was too long for a starling.
The bird's feathers were largely dark, but bordered with light rusty brown. The "eyebrows" were this same light rusty color, and fairly pronounced. The beak was black. My best guess is an immature red-winged blackbird, but I can't find any pictures online that show some of the details I saw (particularly the edging of the feathers and the strong eyebrows.)
We live in a suburban area in Southeastern CT, but our house backs onto a fairly large tract of relatively undisturbed forest. We are about 1/4 mile from a major river (including wetlands) and about 3 miles from Long Island Sound.
It was not a starling. I know starlings well, and the tail was too long for a starling.
Best answer: Yep, female Red-winged Blackbird is my suggestion too. Mysterious-stripey-bird is my mental model for them (as opposed to bird-with-no-field-marks which is a female House Sparrow).
posted by hydrobatidae at 9:16 AM on December 5, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by hydrobatidae at 9:16 AM on December 5, 2021 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Yes, a female red-winged blackbird. They are very high on the list of birds mistaken for other birds.
posted by mollweide at 9:22 AM on December 5, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by mollweide at 9:22 AM on December 5, 2021 [1 favorite]
I have found the cornell bird finder to be super helpful with this kind of thing. It let's you put in general stuff about the bird and where you saw it, and then shows you the pictures of possible birds.
posted by ice-cream forever at 10:14 AM on December 5, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by ice-cream forever at 10:14 AM on December 5, 2021 [6 favorites]
Best answer: I would agree, female Red-Winged blackbird!
posted by ceithern at 5:01 AM on December 6, 2021
posted by ceithern at 5:01 AM on December 6, 2021
Response by poster: Huh, they must be one of those species whose appearance varies more than you expect. Thanks for the confirmation, everyone!
posted by Johnny Assay at 6:19 AM on December 6, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Johnny Assay at 6:19 AM on December 6, 2021 [1 favorite]
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posted by somedaycatlady at 8:41 AM on December 5, 2021 [2 favorites]