Posted by Mitch Heindel (209.178.158.80) on August 16, 2003 at 07:46:17:
First I'm sure there's a legion of experts out there
assuring the bird is un-identifiable. However, it IS
likely one or the other of the species in question.
If someone put a gun to my head and said "we know which it is - you get one guess - and you're dead if you're wrong, I'd say it is a Glossy Ibis. I lived
in the east for years and saw many many of them. The
narrowness of facial skin in the exact structure of an
adult Glossy weighs heavily. So does the white-ish edge
of facial skin meeting the eye forward and below the peak of eye at top and forward and above peak of eye
at bottom of eye. This also perfectly matches my image
of Glossy Ibis. While the streaking on the throat rules out adult, I'm not sure it's a juvenile either.
Maybe a AHY type - subadult???? I don't see red in
the bill, and I wouldn't stake my life on whether or not I'd heard a bird alert about sps. 'x'. It just
looks like a Glossy more than a White-faced to me.
cheers!
Mitch