Variation in Winter Dowitchers T I

24, 2020 with a for the thick, dark mud; and when you ground, and some of the birds approached friend of mine, Catalina, her father, and my finally reach the water, there is trash lit- to within 15 feet of me. [...] I also have a photo of a bird that I PETER PYLE numb from the cold; I couldn’t even feel think is an adult, possibly a Short-billed San Francisco, California the sharp pricks of the licorice seed pods Dowitcher, rare in our area—especially ppyle@birdpop.org as I plucked them off my shoes and pant in late October. [...] 24 virtually all adults nate plumages, not in a transitional state as it has a lot more juvenile feathers remaining have completed the prebasic molt, so even occurs with our featured Long-billed Dow- in the upperparts than the three birds in if these dowitchers will be wintering here itchers and other shorebirds with a “North- the Featured Photo, resulting in a brighter (doubtful given Hannah’s lo. [...] A view stripes” through the outer webs, resulting in As I mentioned at the outset, the Macau- like this reminds us of the value and power a fiercer look, as in first-cycle Short-billeds lay Library offers a helpful platform for the of aging birds by their feathers. [...] (those tiger stripes apparent in the middle four primaries, some inner secondaries, bird in the Featured Photo are actually the and most but not all of the greater coverts Within any group of 20 birds there is usu- central rectrices peeking through) and (b) are formative; meanwhile, the outer three ally, hopefully, one oddball, and this is it! For J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 1 | A B A.