Tweetsters,

Paul Hicks and I got some decent views of the "Red" Fox Sparrow just east of Tenino today. The bird corresponds well to what Sibley depicts as Red (Taiga), which is to say it appears to be a strongly marked Red Fox Sparrow (zaboria or iliaca, which may not be separable from one another in the field) rather than a drab altivagans which is overall much closer in appearance to some of the brighter Sooty types. This Fox Sparrow's face is strongly marked with rusty and gray, the underparts are truly white with rusty markings, the wings and tail are nicely rusty, and the back is gray streaked with rust. There were Sooty Fox and Song sparrows nearby for contrast.

The state bird records committee includes some distinctive subspecies (and potential species splits) as review birds, such as Red Fox Sparrow and Bewick's Swan, and is looking for good and thorough documentation of such sightings to help establish their pattern of occurrence in Washington.

Here are Paul's comments and site directions from yesterday's tweeters postings:

"Saturday morning, 11/13, I observed two atypical Fox Sparrows. (The birds were very active with gorgeous weather.) The first was most likely a "red", on Mull Rd just east of Tenino via SR 507 (toward Rainier). Turn left (north) on Mull Rd. The best place to park is probably on the right-hand shoulder as you approach the bridge guard rail, right up against the two survey stakes there (the shoulder is solid). Location: about 150 feet north of the bridge, past the large trees on the left and around 80 feet back (area is fenced off). The bird hangs out in the rose/snowberry brambles and will rise into the taller isolated trees, with excursions into the snowberry patch just north of the adjacent fenceline. Description: red-brown upperparts and tail with bright/saturated red-brown uppertail coverts (almost glows in sunlight), unmarked gray rump, gray back streaked red-brown, and a prominent dark area below the eye (cheek) on a patterned/contrasty head. (Definitely not the full-hooded look of typical "sooty." No view of underparts. A similar individual was observed in the same location one year ago.) Later in the day Bob Sundstrom also caught a fleeting glimpse of a "suspicious" red-brown sparrow in this location."

Good sparrow hunting, Bob

Bob Sundstrom
ixoreus at scattercreek.com
Tenino, WA