What do I have here?

[Maestro]

When I took this picture, the colors attracted me, but simply thought it was one of the many variations of sparrows. However on closer inspection, I don't think the bill is sparrow-like at all, plus it is black.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v116/maestros/Nature/Small%20Birds/Unknown.jpg

I'm confused yet again. I have been looking through my Sibley's book, but I can't find an exact match. I have gone through many sparrows, buntings and other cardinal type birds but I can't find anything in which I am confident. Any help would be appreciated. BTW, this bird was in San Antonio, but I think I have seen one in my own area in Midlothian as well.

[Connie Sandlin]

House Sparrow - male - full breeding plumage

[Maestro]

Thanks Connie. I didn't make it to the Old World Sparrow section of Sibley's. If I had, I would have seen the perfect match. D'oh (smacks head in shame.) :rolleyes:

[Connie Sandlin]

That's part of what makes birding such an interesting and challenging pasttime, Maestro. I remember a time when I was birding as an adult with my parents and we saw some birds at a bit of a distance that we just couldn't figure out from their plumage. We were looking at them and at our books and wondering what kind of exotic birds we were looking at.

All at once, my dad and I realized what we were seeing, and sheepishly said, "Ohhhhhh." My mom was a beat behind us and was saying, "What? What?"

From then on, European Starlings (who have 4 plumages, as far as I know) became known in our family as "Golden-fronted Speckle-bellies". :o

[betsy]

"Golden-fronted Speckle-bellies". :D -- That's really cute, Connie!

As for the number of their plumages, it kinda depends on how often you look at a particular bird. They molt in the fall into feathers that have those pale spots on the tips. To get into their glossy, iridescent black breeding plumage, they simply get rid of those spots by wearing them away. Little by little, the spots change from pointed-fingernail shapes to inverted chevrons to thin inverted Vs to nothing as bits of them break off. Some birds take better care of their clothes than others and take much longer to lose their spots entirely. If you see one that still has some of those inverted Vs left in the summer, it probably has a valet taking care of its clothes! ;)

[Maestro]

Personally Connie, I like Golden-fronted Speckled Bellies better than Starling. :D

[Connie Sandlin]

Then you might also enjoying knowing that we nicknamed Eastern/Western Meadowlarks "Whatzats" because we always caught ourselves saying "What's that?" and realizing it was a another Meadowlark as the words were coming out of our mouths. :rolleyes:

My dad liked to call Great-tailed Grackles "Big Ikeys" because of they way the males strut around and stick their bills up in the air to show who's the biggest and the best, all full of themselves.

I miss birding with my parents. Sigh... We were always having little local adventures. That's how I got into birding - my parents became interested when I was about 5 years old. I was born in Dallas but grew up in Grand Prairie. (This was when there was still empty land between cities in Dallas County.) :p We spent a lot of time driving the backroads in southwest Dallas County. Much of that area is now under Joe Pool Lake!