Juvenile Plumages Designed to Confuse

"I hate fall warblers!" We hadn't even gotten out of the parking lot and the prospect of trying to identify adolescent songbirds was already daunting. Young people have trouble with their own identities, but young birds are a problem for watchers and birders.

Most of the species that are permanent residents of eastern North America have relatively drab coloration. They wear variations of brown and gray or black and white. Two clear exceptions are the male cardinal and male goldfinch. However, the young birds of these two are like the females, a dull orange-brown and a plain inconspicuous olive green.

The males of almost all tropical species generally show their southern heritage, bearing the bright hues that betray their exotic origin. There is no mistaking the bright orange and black of the Baltimore oriole, or the red, black and white of the American redstart. Females and young birds are another story. If you look in the field guides, there is a page dedicated to "confusing fall warblers." It is not just the warblers who can confuse.

I often get calls about the strange streaked, or yellow, or green bird in the yard or at the feeder. One that is "not in the book," or looks like a species that is not supposed to be in New England. There is no way to talk a caller out of the stripe-headed tanager or great kiskadee, species that are virtually impossible in New England. Likely the bird is an immature rose-breasted grosbeak, heavily streaked with a buffy breast.

Birds that are hard to identify are invariably females or young birds of common species in plumages that do not appear in some field guides. There simply is not room to depict all the many variations. The birder who complained about the fall warblers was experienced. On that trip alone several of us were embarrassed by not being able to identify the birds we were seeing.

In some cases you have to unlearn what you know about spring breeding plumage, and learn a whole new bird. The chestnut-sided warbler loses its chestnut side and yellow cap and gains a green cap. The magnolia warbler loses its black mask, black breast band, and white wing bars. The immature bay-breasted warbler loses the bay cap and breast. The blackpoll loses all its black and gains a suffusion of olive and yellow. In the fall a half dozen different warblers all share a dark back and a yellowish, streaked underside. Only subtle differences remain, all undetectable without a long clear look.

How often do you get such a look? In fall the foliage is lush and the birds lurk half hidden in the bushes or high trees, flitting from leaf to leaf with amazing speed, and generally acting like they know we are watching, taunting us with half views of back ends. Usually there are small groups of birds of mixed species. "I see an eye ring." "My bird has a streak over the eye, not an eye ring." 'Where is your bird?" "It's in that tangle right in front of me." Sure! "There are six tangles in front of me."

Fall warblers are certainly a challenge, but the rewards are worth the effort. Sometimes a tree is alive with movement, with 20-30 individuals flitting from twig to twig. You eventually do get clear satisfying views, and you can distinguish the immature blackpoll, magnolia, blackburnian or Cape May warbler. Such a mixed flock of migrants can appear anywhere, even in a suburban back yard. So keep an eye out.

If you can't be sure of the identity of a bird, even with a good look, the best advice is to let it go. If a bird persists at a feeder or in a yard more than a day, and it looks exactly like an exotic species not occurring in New England, contact someone who is a bird club member or interested in birds immediately. However, it can't be just almost a match, it has to be exact. If not, then it is probably one of those common immatures designed to confuse.

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