I'm sticking with Bay-breasted. Blackpoll should have yellow feet.

...byard

Byard Miller
Line's End Inc <http://www.linesend.com>
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On Oct 9, 2008, at 9:37 AM, Ernie Buford wrote:

> Oh the agony!  But wait, there's more.  I managed to round up a few  
> more photos.  This is the entire lot -- the good, the bad, and the  
> ugly:
>
> http://www.uvm.edu/~ebuford/birds/CE_Fall_warbler.html
>
> Top vote-getters so far are bay-breasted and blackpoll.  What say  
> you now?
>
> Thanks for playing!
> EB
>
> Fred and Chris Pratt wrote:
>> Well, you're right - with just these two photos a definitive  
>> answer may not be possible.  For example, I am uncomfortable  
>> pronouncing the back streaked (and therefore a Blackpoll or a Bay- 
>> breasted) or unstreaked (and therefore a Pine).  Also, is the  
>> mantle a dark green as the top photo suggests or almost yellow- 
>> greenish as the lower photo suggests?  The latter color might push  
>> us towards Blackpoll (though leg color isn't as pale or as orange  
>> as one would like for Blackpoll).  Finally, the lower photo  
>> suggests a touch of buff or bay on the flank (barely visible)  
>> which of course could close the deal for Bay-breasted.
>>
>> Another interesting thing to note is the eye which seems to have  
>> crescents rather than an eyebrow.  To me this is suggestive of a  
>> Pine Warbler.
>>
>> If I saw this bird in the field, I am sure it would be readily  
>> identifiable. However, if I were still on the Bird Records  
>> Committee, I would be seeking to know how other members would  
>> respond to the questions I have raised regarding the two photos.
>>
>> I guess I think the back is streaked - and therefore not a Pine -  
>> so if a gun were at my head, I would probably go with a bay-breast.
>>
>> But who knows - maybe the poor thing is a Blackpoll!  Or maybe  
>> that back isn't streaked after all.
>>
>> Pipit
>>
>> Ernie Buford wrote:
>>> Here's a Fall quiz bird for you all.  I have my own guess plus an  
>>> opinion from a member of the bird records committee, but be  
>>> forewarned that there may not be a definitive answer.  All I have  
>>> at the moment are these two photos:
>>>
>>> http://www.uvm.edu/~ebuford/birds/CE_Fall_warbler.html
>>>
>>> This bird hit a window in Bristol last week and was photographed  
>>> by a friend of mine.  Which warbler is it, and why?  Give it a shot.
>>>
>>> Enjoy,
>>> Ernie Buford
>>>