RECORDS COMMITTEE
REPORT FORM


1. COMMON NAME: Red-necked Stint (Calidris ruficollis)
2. NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS: (age, sex,plumage): 1 in mostly alternate adult
plumage.
3. LOCALITY: West pond, shore bird flats, SJCR, Fort Stevens State Park
Clatsop Co., OR
4. DATE: 19 July 1997
5. TIME OF DAY: 1330hr to 1400hr
6. REPORTING OBSERVERS NAME & ADDRESS: Mike Patterson
1338 Kensington Av
Astoria, OR 97103
9. LIGHT CONDITIONS: bright sun (over head)
10. OPTICAL EQUIPMENT: 20 x 60 Bushell spotting scope
11. DISTANCE FROM BIRD: 15m
12. DURATION OF OBSERVATION: about 20 minutes
13. HABITAT: Tidal mudflats
14. BEHAVIOR: The bird spent most of its time probing the mud in association
with Western Sandpipers. When the WESA flock flew, it flew. When they
landed, it landed. At first it seemed to prefer foraging in the algae
mat on higher ground rather than at the waters edge, but after the first
flight and return foraged at the water with the WESA.
15. DESCRIPTION (reverse side if necessary):
Size: Smaller than Western Sandpiper and larger than Least Sandpiper
Head: Smallish and rounded, Crown light tan background with darker brown
streaks. Broad white (to pinkish) supercillium darker brownish eye
strip. Whitish to pinkish cheek. Nape rufous/brown streaked with
darker brown.
Bill: black, short with approximately uniform width from tip to base.
Chin and throat: uniform rufous/red with no streaking. A collar of dark
streaks pectoral region.
Breast, Belly & and under-tail coverts: the rufous at the throat ends
cleanly at the pectoral and aside from the darker streaking at this
division the breast and belly were clean white with no streaking on
the sides.
Mantle: Brown streaked with darker brown.
Scapulars: Beginning to moult into basic, mostly rufous/brown, with dark
brown centers, many grayer feathers present.
Coverts: Grayish with paler margins, giving a scaley look.
Tertials: medium brown with paler margin. Tertials as long (or nearly as
long) as primaries.
Primaries: dark brown
Legs & Feet: Black. The lack of palmations on the toes was evident.
16. VOICE: none heard
17. SIMILAR SPECIES: I was able to directly compare this individual with
Western and Least Sanpipers. The bird in question was smaller overall than
Western Sandpiper. It had a smaller more rounded head than Westerns and
a much smaller narrower bill. Western Sandpipers in alternate plumage
have a heavily streaked (with cheverons) neck and breast. These streaks
continue down the flanks. The scapular feathers on Westerns are usually
3 colored rufous centers, brown then cream or white margins. Westerns
have browner tertials. Least Sandpiper was eliminated by leg color
primarily, but Leasts are generally darker brown overall with brown coverts.
Little Stint in alternate plumage can appear "red headed," but the face
is highly streaked rather than uniform with a with chin and throat. The
coverts are darker centered and the tertials are darker.
18. PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE: I have extensive experience with expected North
American Calidrids. I have seen Little Stints in Africa. I reported one
other Red-necked Stint to the OBRC in 1989 (because I'm a bad photogrpher.)



--
*********************************** I got the blues so bad one time
* Mike Patterson, Astoria, OR * it put my face in a permanent frown
* mpatters at orednet.org * but I am feelin' so much better
http://www.pacifier.com/~mpatters I could cake-walk into town