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Wednesday, 27 September 2017

Three Plumage Phases - Ruddy Turnstones

I watched a flock of Ruddy Turnstones fly in and start preening one day at the lake. I found it interesting that among that small group of birds there were three very distinct plumage phases, the adult bird in the top two photos, a juvenile with its head tucked in  (middle) and what I think must be an adult already transitioning to winter plumage. (bottom)  The bird at the top is probably in the initial stages of moult as well, it's just not as obvious yet. It's easy to see why birders, myself included, can get easily confused when trying to ID birds when they're not in their breeding plumage. August 27, Matthew's Lake.
 





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