Mystery sparrow! Can you ID?

On November 20th, Ken Brown was back to the group he helped form, the ABC Club, which was formed originally for the “graduates” of his Advanced Birding Class, but now has expanded to become the birding branch of Tahoma Audubon, for all birders.

Ken Brown faces his jury of peers on bird ID

It was with some anticipation and dread that we gathered, knowing Ken was going to try to stump us. Showing off his newfound prowess with photography, he had us “help” identify the birds in the slides, after having cropped off all distinguishing features! Turns out, he trained us well, and many of them were identifiable, at least to some of the group.

Laurel and Rachel give Ken something to think about

That Ash-throated Flycatcher was shown in a foreshortened view, and it could only be identified by knowing where and when the photo was taken. The Hutton’s Vireo was shown with the toes cropped off so we couldn’t use their color as a hint. Both of these were readily identified in the followup shots, though. And what about that invisible gull, hidden in plain sight in the flock of Bony’s? What was expected to be a toughie, an immature Common Yellowthroat was immediately identified by Faye, followed by others chiming in.

Willettes congratulate Ken (Melissa, Faye, Laurel, Diane)

But then there was The Sparrow. Even Ken was unsure what it was and had just a frontal shot. Speculation included young Chipping or Clay-colored in transition plumage. But maybe something else entirely. So we found out the real reason Ken showed the slide, to get us to do his ID work!

Kay and Teri, who came all the way from Seattle, chat with Faye

A highlight of the evening was refreshments! Much popcorn and other snacky foods, as well as water, were catered by Rachel Brown, Ken’s wife, and were complemented by great big cookies brought by Chazz.
After the official part of the evening was over, many stayed to exchange stories of recent birds as well as ideas for future presentations. Eric is going to astound us next year sometime with a recap of hawkwatch sites he’s visited, and Laurel might show some Harpy and Crested Eagles in Panama, seen with Sergio Seipke’s Raptours, inspired by Sergio’s appearance at one of our meetings last year.

Looks like we’ll have an exciting year ahead with ABC. Our New Year’s Day “Cruise”, our Big Year and Best Photo party in January, then an ABC trip to the Lower Rio Grande in February, and much more!