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Need help with ID (no picture)
Sorry, I had the camera ready in case it came back. Been in my backyard for 2 weeks, then haven't seen it in the last 2 weeks.
All black, slightly longer than a robin, but slightly more slender. When flying overhead, the underside of its wing feathers were white, despite being all black foliage. The most distinctive feature was all black "spiked hair" feathers on its head, much like a kingfisher. It would eat orange berries from a local shrub. Nicknamed it "Spike", LOL!
Spotted in my backyard in the Mojave Desert (Palmdale, CA)
Any ideas? I checked if it were some kind of kingfisher, but there are no all-black ones. I guessing this was a bird in migration, since it was never seen before in my area.
Ideas?
Thanks!
-g
7 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
You probably will hear a phainopepla before you see one, if you see it all. This resplendent feathered friend makes a melodic, rising “wurp” vocalization. When I hear that call, I look up high into the tree tops. I will often see this distinctive looking bird perched on a branch in the open, surveying its surroundings.
The name “phainopepla” derives from the Greek meaning “shining robe.” And shiny he is, the male of the species, with glossy black feathers and translucent white wing patches seen in flight. In contrast, the female and juvenile are a dull, mouse gray. They all have mesmerizing, crimson red eyes with solid black pupils, and a striking crest that resembles the hairdo of a punk rocker.
While the phainopepla regularly eats insects, its main source of nutrition is berries, primarily that of mistletoe. In the course of a day, a single bird may eat several hundred, which it swallows whole. A specialized digestive system can handle it all.
The phainopepla mimics the calls of other birds, which makes positive identification more difficult without visual confirmation. I wasn’t surprised to learn that it imitates desert habitat birds such as the verdin and Gambel’s quail, since the desert is where I first knew them to reside.
https://www.yosemitelakespark.org/the-secret-world-of-the-phainopepla/
The name “phainopepla” derives from the Greek meaning “shining robe.” And shiny he is, the male of the species, with glossy black feathers and translucent white wing patches seen in flight. In contrast, the female and juvenile are a dull, mouse gray. They all have mesmerizing, crimson red eyes with solid black pupils, and a striking crest that resembles the hairdo of a punk rocker.
While the phainopepla regularly eats insects, its main source of nutrition is berries, primarily that of mistletoe. In the course of a day, a single bird may eat several hundred, which it swallows whole. A specialized digestive system can handle it all.
The phainopepla mimics the calls of other birds, which makes positive identification more difficult without visual confirmation. I wasn’t surprised to learn that it imitates desert habitat birds such as the verdin and Gambel’s quail, since the desert is where I first knew them to reside.
https://www.yosemitelakespark.org/the-secret-world-of-the-phainopepla/
