A tough bird based only on these photos and not in the field.  I agree  
with Pipit and lean towards Bay-breasted based on "green" green color  
of upperparts, appearance of buff on the flanks in photo #3, dull leg  
color (though there is a hint of pinkish, isn' there?).  The split eye  
ring is striking, but I think that the sharp white edges of the  
tertials argue against Pine Warbler.  What if it actually turned out  
to be a hybrid???

Scott

Quoting Ernie Buford <[log in to unmask]>:

> 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
>>>