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Post by Steve Backes on Aug 10, 2009 12:50:58 GMT -5
Ron Smith just reported to Birdbrains that Ed Kwater found an adult female Rufous Hummingbird at 1:00 PM on the Osprey Trail at Honeymoon Island State Park. This is only the second report of a Rufous Hummingbird for Pinellas County.
The following is quoted from Ron's post:
"It can be found approx. 50 yards past the "scrub area" of the trail, which is just past the 1/4 mile mark. He said just past the scrub area is a red cedar on the left side of the trail, continue on about 50 yards to a very large slash pine right along the trail. The bird is right there, feeding on flowers on the west side of the trail and is very defensive - chasing away a couple of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that have tried to sneak in. It may very well stick around the rest of the afternoon."
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Post by Steve Backes on Aug 16, 2009 13:30:02 GMT -5
The "Rufous" at Honeymoon Island was last seen on the 12th.
It was believed to be a young male but there is some question to that. The pattern on the throat is consistant with a female but a young male may have a similar pattern as its full gorget grows in. The heavy spotting (stippling) on the throat indicates male rather than female while green on the upper side of the central tail feathers, R1, seem to indicate female. So, there's still question as to the sex of this bird.
Also in question is the species of this bird. Its identity may never be determined. The female and young of Rufous and Allen's Hummingbirds are so similar that it often requires in hand study and measurements to determine the species. There are some field marks that can indicate one species over another but there is enough overlap in these measurements that visual (and limited photographic) documentaion is not enough to positively identify the bird.
In the case of this bird, there were photographs showing one of two important feathers for distinguishing the two species. Unfortunately, the more important feathers, R2 (the feather next to the center tail feathers), appear to be missing. On the Rufous, these feathers have a slight indentation on the inside of the webbing at the tip.
The second important feather is the outer most tail feather, R5. On the Allen's, this feather can be very narrow but there is some overlap in size range where a narrow Rufous R5 can be equal to a broad Allen's R5. The photo of this bird that shows this feather appears to show a fairly broad feather that is near equal in width to the one next to it but the photo is not perfectly clear and the apparent width may also be a result of the camera angle.
My take on this bird is that there appears to be no evidence that it is an Allen's and the only hope for that evidence does not rule out Rufous as a possibility. Banding data of birds that look similar to this one indicate a very strong likelihood for Rufous over Allen's. For these reasons, I would assume that it is most likely a Rufous.
Unfortunatly, we still have to call it a Selasphorus or Rufous/Allen's. In the collection of scientific data, in this case the bird's id, there are no "almost certains" or "most likelys". There needs to be indisputable proof of the data and that proof does not exist with this bird and most likely never will now that it appears to have departed.
For the person who wanted to see what a female/young Rufous looks like, this bird filled that need. Can you record it on your personal list? Not really but it's your list. I guess it depends on the "rules" of your list.
If you're including this bird on a list that you're submitting in a competition (ABA, etc.) or reporting the sighting on a bird count (CBC, GBBC, etc.) or reporting it as a documented sighting to the regional editor for Audubon Field Notes, it should be referred to as a Selasphorus ssp. or a Rufous/Allen's.
The Rufous that have been reported from my yard have all been banded and confirmed through in hand observations and measurements. There have been a few birds that have had to be reported as Selasphorus as they've arrived after a banding session or avoided traps.
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Post by nbjazmin on Sept 22, 2009 14:09:49 GMT -5
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