ID-FRONTIERS for April 7-13, 2002

Messages are displayed in the order they were received.  Subject  From  Date   Time   Brant   pabuckley    Mon, 8 Apr 2002   5:09pm   A pale Curlew in Italy   Menotti Passarella    Thu, 11 Apr 2002   2:46pm

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Subject: Brant
From: pabuckley <pabuckley(AT)URI.EDU>
Date: 8 Apr 2002 5:09pm

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Shai Mitra asked me to post these comments regarding Wilson et al.'s
message of 7 April, concerning Brant identification -- PAB

Hello,

I read with great interest Wilson et al.'s posting regarding several
Black Brant they observed and photographed on 17 March 2002 on Long
Island, New York.  These observations were made at two
localities--Riis Park and Pt. Lookout--where I had observed and
photographed Black Brant on earlier dates, and it is not at all
obvious to me how many individuals are actually involved.  Here I
offer a few comments regarding the images from 17 March posted by
Wilson et al. on <http://www.oceanwanderers.com/NY123BlckBrnt.html>
and linked pages, and those I took on 16 March and posted at
<http://www.geocities.com/gsbas2000>.

The situation is simplest at Pt. Lookout, where a single
distinctively marked individual has been present since at least 7
March.  All of Wilson et al.'s images of Brant 3 refer to this bird,
as does my (lower) image at <http://www.geocities.com/gsbas2000>.
The apparent degree of contrast
between this bird's black neck stocking and its brown back and apron
varies under different lighting conditions--a fact amply confirmed by
my own observations on five dates 7-23 March, and by differences
between my photo from 16 March and Wilson et al.'s photos from 17
March.  Even so, color differences between this individual and
typical Pacific coast-wintering Black Brant, although subtle, have
generated considerable interest among Brant watchers.

The situation at Riis Park is much less clear.  The bird that P. A.
Buckley and I found there on 14 March differed markedly from typical
Black Brant. The contrast between its black neck stocking and its
brown back and apron was very striking.  As PAB and I noted in our
initial posting to FRONTIERS (26 March), this bird "showed similar
dorsal coloration to accompanying _hrota_ and further differed from
typical _nigricans_ by virtue of its extensive rectangular (vs.
wedge-shaped) white flank patch and its more restricted dark apron,
which extended only slightly beyond the legs and faded (lightened)
noticeably rearward."

In some respects, this bird resembles Wilson et al.'s Brant 2, but
the two are certainly different individuals.  The bird that PAB and I
studied on 14 March (and which I saw again and photographed with
several companions on 16 March) showed a bold neck-collar that,
although less extremely developed than that of the Pt. Lookout bird,
was nevertheless unambiguously complete ventrally.  It was also
strikingly small and short-legged--features which, along with its
complete neck-collar, allowed me to be certain that the bird I
photographed 16 March was the same as the one PAB and I found on 14
March.   Thus, Wilson et al.'s Brant 2 represents yet another
enigmatic dark brant from Long Island this year.

It is difficult to say whether Wilson et al.'s photos of Brant 1
could possibly refer to the bird PAB and I found on 14 March.  Most
images of Brant 1 look rather different from the bird I saw.
Curiously, the image at the end of the Brant 1 page ("Family
Matters") appears rather different from other images of Brant 1.
Whether this bird is in fact Brant 1, Brant 2, the bird PAB and I
saw, or a fourth adult Black Brant from Riis Park this year--is
difficult to say.  In any case, it looks rather different than a
typical Black Brant.

The presence of at least three-five unusually brown adult Black Brant
on Long Island this winter is remarkable and certainly merits further
discussion.

Best,
Shai Mitra
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Subject: A pale Curlew in Italy
From: Menotti Passarella <aster_men(AT)YAHOO.COM>
Date: 11 Apr 2002 2:46pm

Hi all.

A pale Curlew was photographed last week in NE Italy:

http://www.geocities.com/badile11/Chiu2.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/badile11/Chiu4.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/badile11/Chiu5.jpg

What about an Eurasian Curlew of the eastern
subspecies Numenius arquata orientalis ?

This bird was obviously paler than the other curlews
in the surroundings; moreover, look at the pale inner
wing in the photos.

Regards

Menotti Passarella
Italy
aster_men(AT)yahoo.com

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