I consider the jury to still be out, but I guess we are probably leaning
Black-headed on my Grosbeak. I’m not sure I’ve seen a Black-headed with
such heavy dense and uniform streaking all the way across the breast and
down onto the belly, and it’s hard to find online photos that quite match
it, in those respects. However, some are close, Neil Paprocki obtained
additional photos that show some buffiness on the nape, and the bill may
not be quite as pink as I thought in the field. Any additional input is
welcome from those knowledgeable about the finer points of identifying
immature Pheucticus Grosbeaks.
Good Birding,
Carl Lundblad
Moscow, ID
On Fri, Sep 6, 2019 at 12:02 PM Carl Lundblad
wrote:
> It was quite a great morning in the University of Idaho Arboretum and
> Botanical Gardens. In fact, it was probably the best day I’ve had in there
> (eBird says I’ve birded in there 118 times in nearly 6 years) with minor
> fallout conditions (or major fallout conditions, by local standards). The
> best birds were a fall or immature female-type ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK in
> the Oak Grove along the east central edge and a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW
> feeding with other sparrows and finches in the field and hedgerow west of
> the parking lot. As far as I know, the grosbeak is a first record for
> Latah County (but please correct me if you know otherwise). Other notables
> included 2+ Olive-sided Flycatchers, 2 Solitary Sandpipers, a Barn Owl, a
> Mountain X Black-capped Chickadee, a late-ish Lazuli Bunting, and lots of
> warblers (by local standards). Full list and rarity photos are in eBird:
> https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S59555590.
>
> Good Birding!
>
> Carl Lundblad
> Moscow, Idaho
>