Had an unusual dove at my feeders just now (4:30 pm), in
Laurel MD, PG County. Uniform drab gray with scaly
appearance, noticably smaller than Mourning Dove (one was
conveniently right next to it; that's how I noticed).
Looking through Sibley, an adult INCA DOVE appears to be the
best match. I have some photos (hand-held automatic, first
2 through the bird protection screen; it was already getting
dark, so these are fuzzy):
http://www.astro.umd.edu/~dcr/xfer/strange_dove/
I didn't edit or crop these in any way, so they're large.
You can see the red eye in the 3rd pic. I was maneuvering
for another shot when the bird flew off, so I didn't see the
rufous underwings. Evidently Inca Doves are expected in the
states bordering Mexico, not up here. Is this likely an
escapee, or could it be a true vagrant?
D
--
Derek C. Richardson, College Park, PG County, MD
http://www.astro.umd.edu/~dcr/Archives/Photos/birds.html |