Post by kastern on Sept 14, 2006 18:16:19 GMT -8
There are two different types of birds over here right now that are driving me crazy trying to ID.
The first ones are swallow like - but slimmer, both in body type and especially in the wings. The body ends in a tapered tail. They act like swallows but fly more eratically and with faster wing beats. They are always seen as dark profiles although we think we saw a lighter body, especially near the head on one or two of them. There had to be at least 50 of them flying around, some very high up. Could they be Vaux's Swift?
The others, I have come to the conclusion must be American Pipits yet it seems to me that Pipits I've seen before have a more upright posture than these guysand were a bit larger. There must be 20 or 30 of them at least. They are on the gravel bar areas, spend most of their time on the ground, when disturbed they fly up, chattering while they fly, but don't go very far and land on the ground again. I did manage some photos today and that drew me to the conclusion that they have to be Pipits. Could they possibly be anything else?
Kathy
The first ones are swallow like - but slimmer, both in body type and especially in the wings. The body ends in a tapered tail. They act like swallows but fly more eratically and with faster wing beats. They are always seen as dark profiles although we think we saw a lighter body, especially near the head on one or two of them. There had to be at least 50 of them flying around, some very high up. Could they be Vaux's Swift?
The others, I have come to the conclusion must be American Pipits yet it seems to me that Pipits I've seen before have a more upright posture than these guysand were a bit larger. There must be 20 or 30 of them at least. They are on the gravel bar areas, spend most of their time on the ground, when disturbed they fly up, chattering while they fly, but don't go very far and land on the ground again. I did manage some photos today and that drew me to the conclusion that they have to be Pipits. Could they possibly be anything else?
Kathy
