Bulletin 320 - Guatemala #6 - Jays, swallows, sparrows

I went for a third visit to Guatemala in May. Once again, I used the wonderful local guide Knut Eisermann of Cayaya Birding. On this visit, we went to different locations to see new species.

I got photos of 4 different species of jays on the trip, 2 of which were life birds for me. The 16" Brown Jay (Psilorhinus morio) is a dark brown jay with light belly. The adult has a black bill and I had photographed it in south Texas where it is an vagrant. But the juvenile has a yellow bill and I got a photo of a juvie.

Brown Jay - juvenile

The 12" Bushy-crested Jay (Cyanocorax melanocyaneus) I had photos before, but got better pics on this trip. It has a black head and royal blue body and yellow eye. The crest is usually held flat so not visible.

Bushy-crested Jay

The 13.5" Unicolored Jay (Aphelocoma unicolor) is a dark blue bird with a darker face.

Unicolored Jay

The smallest is the 11" Azure-hooded Jay (Cyanolyca cucullata). He is a deep purplish blue with a turquoise hat. 

Azure-hooded Jay

I also got photos of 3 species of sparrows, 2 of which were lifers. The one I saw previously was the 7" Rusty Sparrow (Aimophila rufescens). He is rufous on the back and cap and had a gray face.

Rusty Sparrow

The 6" Green-backed Sparrow (Arremonops chloronotus) is very similar to the Olive Sparrow in south Texas. It has a greenish back, and gray face with some stripes.

Green-backed Sparrow

The last is the 7.5" White-eared Ground Sparrow (Melozone leucotis). It is easily IDed by the distinctive facial pattern.

White-eared Ground Sparrow

Swallows are a delight to watch as they are magnificent flyers taking insects on the wing. However to photograph them, they need to land and perch. The 5" Black-capped Swallow (Notiochelidon pileata) has a restricted range in the mountains from southern Mexico to El Salvador. It had a black head and back and light underparts. It was a lifer. Here is a group at the top of a dead tree.

Black-capped Swallow

The 5.5" Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Stelgidopteryx serripennis) is a common bird in North America. However this is the rigdwayi subspecies in the Yucatan and adjacent Belize and Guatemala. It is 10% larger, has white spots above bill, black undertail coverts and a forked tail. It also nests on cliffs. All these differentiate it from the other subspecies of the bird. It is listed as a possible future split to be called Ridgway's Swallow.

Northern Rough-winged Swallow - ridgwayi ssp

I have the different bird families in single folders for easy viewing

I have photos of 37 of the 130 species of crows and jays

I have photos of 67 of the 136 species of New World sparrows

I have photos of 15 of the 88 species of swallows

Happy birding and photography,

David McDonald
dkmmdpa@gmail.com

photos copyright 2006 - 2018 David McDonald

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