Rare Bird Report 15-B-01

Idaho Bird Records Committee Rarities Report Form

Species: Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (immature)

Reporter: Jay Carlisle

989 W Sherwood # 306D

Boise, ID 83706

jaycarlisle@boisestate.edu

Other Observers: IBO field crew members Ryan Brady, Emily Stoddard (now Boves), Joselynn Plank, Casey Richart & others

Date Report Prepared: 11-2-09

Date Sighting Occurred: 9-29-01 (capture)

Locality of Observation: Lucky Peak, Ada Co.

Habitat: north-south trending ridgeline with a patchy mosaic of shrubsteppe, mountain deciduous shrubland, and conifer forest

Conditions: I don’t remember

Did you take notes? not at all

Did you consult a field guide or other reference work? during the observation

What guide(s) or reference(s) did you consult?

Pyle’s 1997 ‘The Identification Guide to North American Birds’, Sibley, National Geographic

Description: A sapsucker in juvenile plumage with gold tones to head, face, and back and obvious spotting on crown

Behavior: none observed as this was a bird captured as part of a standardized bird migration study

How and when did you positively identify the bird, and what clinched the identification for you? The bird was ID’d quickly because of the gold tones, distinct crown spotting, and retained juvenile plumage.

How did you eliminate similar species, and what were they? Juvenile Red-naped Sapsucker is similar in appearance but darker overall; also, the typical pattern is for immature Red-napeds to molt into their formative (adult-like) plumage before heading south on migration (whereas immature Yellow-bellieds retain their juvenile plumage well through fall migration & often well into winter). In 13 years of migration banding at Lucky Peak, all immature Red-napeds that we’ve captured (not that many, really – maybe 25+) have fit this molt pattern and have looked very adult-like.

Experience with this species (and similar species): I have observed many (100s), especially during migration and winter in esp. Connecticut, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. I also see many Red-naped (and usually capture a few) annually in Idaho.

General birding experience: extensive; 14+ years in US and Latin America

Were photo(s), video, and/or audio obtained by you? (If yes, please include or attach) Yes, by Ryan Brady (on IBRC website).