Should be an easy one for those experienced with thrushes, but this one bugs me. My guts scream Swainson, but my brain seems to believe that something is different. Maybe a juvenile?
Thanks for your help.
Last edited by P-A. Fortin; 10-21-2015 at 07:06 AM.
It's certainly not a juvenile bird, then. Swainson's arrive on the breeding grounds in mid to late May, so in the first week of June the young would be either eggs or just barely hatched. That's why it's important to provide a date when working on an ID problem.
For an adult in June, the big buffy eyering, buff wash in the throat and upper breast, and lack of rufous tones are all good for Swainson's. Gray-cheeked would be colder with little to no pale around the eye. Hermit would have a thinner white eyering and rufous in the wing and tail. Veery would be rusty all over with much less spotting and no eyering.